help lasek 7 days ago

[LasikExpert]

LASEK enhancement surgery will be nearly identical to the initial surgery with some major exceptions.

How your cornea responds to laser ablation is better understood.
The amount of correction required is smaller and less likely to regress.
You know what to expect.

Red light and green light aberrations during the early stages of healing after refractive surgery are not exactly common, but are known. That specific wavelength of light entering the eye is disrupted. This commonly resolves within the normal six month healing period, is rarely problematic, and is usually is not disruptive to normal functional vision.

Regression back toward myopia (nearsighted, shortsighted) vision explains why your vision is so bad and why your friend's glasses improved things so well. You may experience additional changes in refractive error between now and the time to make a decision about enhancement surgery. Those glasses will make a big difference for you.
If you are at or past age 40, you may not want to have both eyes fully corrected. Read about monovision before making this decision.

Thanks for the kind words, but I'm only repeating what has been learned by knowledgeable individuals.

[jturner29]

i have my glasses now and it feels wonderful to see agian clearly, when i have the enhancement this next time, if the completely correct me, i should be able to see realy well right after the surgery and then after the week time period i should be seeing more like vision with my glasses correct, is it likley at all that my vision will get some better.....or is it more likley to reggress more...

[jturner29]

1 more question, since my correction will be smaller this time, does thatr mean that my cornea wont have to be scratched as deep, or does that have nothing to do with it..

[LasikExpert]

Because you are having LASEK, the epithelium will be removed. This is the outermost layer of the cornea and the layer that quickly reproduces. The amount of tissue from the lower stroma layer that will need to be removed with the laser will be much less than with the original surgery. For details, see LASEK.

[jturner29]

would you agree that this time i will be able to see more clearly right after the surgery than the last time....

[LasikExpert]

Not immediately after surgery, but as soon as the epithelium regenerates.

Disruption of the epithelium, which is requied in LASEK, Epi-Lasik, and PRK, often creates poor vision until it regenerates. Your first week after enhancement will probably be about the same as the first week after initial surgery.

Ask your doctor if PRK may be better than LASEK. During the first 1-3 days vision would probably be worse with PRK than with LASEK, but PRK may resolve faster during the next 3-10 days. This is because PRK removes the epithelium completely and the eye immediately starts to regenerate the cells. LASEK disrupts the cells and some will need time to die completely before they are replaced, sometimes causing a slower vision recovery.

[jturner29]

is prk more painful, and it seems like your vision would be really bad, but if i have scarring from the lasek, then it seems like prk would leave less scare tissue ?

[LasikExpert]

Scar tissue is quite rare with all refractive surgery and is a moot point when considering PRK over LASEK for an enhancement correcting such a small amount of refractive error.

During the first 1-3 days, vision after PRK would probably be worse than vision after LASEK. During the next 1-3 weeks, vision after PRK would probably be better and more stable than vision with LASEK. For many patients the choice is very bad vision for a short time (PRK) or moderately bad vision for a longer time (LASEK). At about 3-6 weeks postop the result will be pretty much the same.

[jturner29]

i was just wondering , my enhancement is not scheduled until november, and right about a month before it i had a miscarrage, well it could have even been three weeks before, and my doctor knew this, now that i have to have an enhancement if i get pregnant between now and that time, will i have to have it postponed . I hope they will wait forme until i get the enhancement, because they say that there is no extra charge as long as you have the enhancement within one year. but i also dont think they would do it on me if i get pregnant ? right?

[LasikExpert]

The correction needed during your enhancement surgery is less than during your initial surgery. This means the probability of regression is less. Your surgeon knows better how your cornea will react to surgery. A flap will not need to be created - the existing flap will be lifted. These are all relative advantages, however enhancement surgery is surgery and you need to discuss with your doctor all details, risks, and benefits.

Added Late:

You should not have refractive surgery while pregnant or until all hormonal effects have disappated. Vision fluctuation is commonly associated with pregnancy and nursing. See Lasik and Pregnancy for details. Thanks to a reader for noticing I missed this important point.