houstonman wrote:thanks for all the input on this thread. Im sort of confused as to what you mean by you get your functional vison to return.... are you saying you cant see for 2 weeks?
Normally with PRK you'll have one eye done at a time. If you to do both eyes at once, then basically yes, you really wouldn't be able see. You wouldn't be BLIND, but you're eyes are dry, scabbed over, very light sensitive, and you certainly couldn't do things such as driving. Since you'll have only one eye done at a time, you'll be relying on your one good eye while the other heals. The reason they only do one eye at a time is because if you did them both, then you will be functionally blind. I know a guy who had PRK done on both eyes at once(done while in the miltary), and he was basically blind for about 7-10 days and never left his house the whole time. He closed all the blinds and sat in a dark room literally for a week, and didn't go back to work for 10 days. This is why only one eye is done at a time. I think the outcome is slightly better with procedures like Lasek or Epi-Lasik, but they will still only do one eye at a time, and the vision you'll have in that one eye won't be good enough to drive for a week or two.
houstonman wrote:Also when would you say you could see 20/20 or better with prk, 3 months? Any idea how long the surgical procedure takes vs lasik?
I can't really answer that, but I know it depends on the person, and it definately shouldn't take 3 months. I would think in 2-4 weeks you could see 20/20, but seeing 20/20 doesn't always equal good vision. Once you have laser vision correction, you'll understand what I mean by that. I had lasik, and my vision has been 20/15 since day one. However, with 20/15 vison on the eye chart, I still couldn't see very well for several months. I know it sounds funny, 20/15 should mean excellent vision, but you really have to experience what I'm talking about before you can understand. And in the initial stages it's even more dramatic with a surface ablation like PRK. The initial stage of PRK is pretty rough, this is the reason Lasik is so popular, and why so many doctors prefer the Lasik procedure. However, in the long run, PRK is more than likely a superior procedure.