What You Should Expect
From Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, and
Laser Eye Surgery

"Throw Away Your Glasses Forever" is what is implied by much of the advertising you see about conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, and other refractive surgery procedures, but what is the truth?

The truth is; the most refractive surgery may provide is the convenience of a reduced need for corrective lenses. To attain that convenience, you must accept some risk. You must accept the risk that you may still need glasses after surgery and the risk of complications due to surgery. The important question is, "What can I reasonably expect?"

There is no central database with information about all the refractive surgery procedures. There is not a report that can tell you exactly what the average patient on the average day with the average doctor can expect, however the standards by which refractive surgeons are measured for CRSQA certification are developed and refined by the CRSQA Quality Standards Advisory Committee (QSAC) and approved by CRSQA's governing Board of Trustees. We believe our standards reflect the national norms and are what most refractive surgery patients can expect.

We consider refractive surgery as a six month process, not a 20-Minute Miracle, and all procedures provided to a patient in the course of refractive surgery, including enhancement surgery, are consider a single refractive surgery event.

If refractive target is plano:

• Not less than 90% of doctor's refractive surgery patients must achieve Snellen 20/40 UCVA or better in each surgical eye.
• Not less than 65% of doctor's refractive surgery patients must achieve Snellen 20/20 UCVA or better in each surgical eye.

In all cases:

• Not less than 90% of applicant's refractive surgery patients must achieve results within +- 1.0 diopter of stated refractive target.
• Not less than 65% of applicant's refractive surgery patients must achieve results within +- 0.5 diopter of stated refractive target.
• Not more than 3% of doctor's monitored refractive surgery patients may report unresolved refractive surgery induced complications of any kind at six months postop.
• Not more than 0.5 % of doctor's monitored refractive surgery patients may experience serious refractive surgery induced complications at six months postop that require extensive maintenance or invasive intervention.

Of course, your results may vary.

If you are ready to choose a doctor to be evaluated for conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, CK, RLE, or any refractive surgery procedure, we highly recommend you consider a doctor who has been evaluated and certified by the USAEyes nonprofit organization. Locate a USAEyes Evaluated & Certified Lasik Laser Eye Surgery Doctor.