Any elective surgery is an important and often difficult decision.
Conventional or custom
wavefront
Lasik,
All-Laser Lasik,
PRK,
LASEK,
Epi-Lasik,
NearVision CK,
P-IOL, and
RLE are all considered safe and effective by medical standards,
but does that mean you will really get what you seek?
Know What You Seek
If you think that being rid of glasses will change your personality,
your mother-in-law will now like you, and you will finally write
that Great Novel, you will probably be disappointed with your results
- even if the surgery is a technical success. If you know what you
really want from Lasik, then you can evaluate the probability
of achieving what you desire. Know your expectations and keep them
reasonable.
Convenience v. Risk
Lasik and other
refractive surgery procedures may offer the convenience of a
reduced need for corrective lenses, but to achieve that convenience
you will be required to accept some risk. You have absolutely no
guarantee that you will get the exact result you want, however a comprehensive
examination from a competent eye care physician can help determine
if you have an elevated risk for a poor outcome.
National Outcome Norms
Our organization's
Quality Standards
Advisory Committee reviews patient outcome data and determines
what USAEyes considers to be the current nation norms
for refractive surgery.
If target is
plano:
- 90% of refractive surgery patients achieve
20/40
UCVA or better
- 65% of refractive surgery patients achieve 20/20 UCVA or
better
In all cases:
- 90% of refractive surgery patients achieve results within
+- 1.00
diopter
of target.
- 65% of refractive surgery patients achieve results within
+- 0.50 diopter of target.
- 3% of refractive surgery patients report unresolved refractive
surgery induced complications of any kind at six months postop.
- 0.5 % of refractive surgery patients may experience serious
refractive surgery induced complications at six months postop
that require extensive maintenance or invasive intervention.
These norms reflect all refractive surgery procedures
including conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik,
PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, NearVision CK, P-IOL, and RLE. These norms
reflect all kinds of patients, including severely
myopic (nearsighted, shortsighted),
hyperopic (farsighted, longsighted), high
astigmatism, and those with more moderate vision correction
needs. Different procedures have different probabilities of success.
Different patient conditions have different probabilities of achieving
the desired outcome. An individual's probability of success depends
upon the unique nature of his or her own eyes and can only be predicted
by a competent doctor after a comprehensive examination.
Not Just Lasik
It is important to meet your eye care doctor with an open mind.
Lasik is currently the most popular refractive surgery technique,
but that does not mean that it is best for everyone's situation.
It may be that an alternative is more appropriate. Review
Lasik
alternatives.
Unreasonable Expectations
It is unreasonable to expect your uncorrected vision after Lasik
will be better than your corrected vision now. It is possible that
it will be better after Lasik, but it is normally unreasonable to
expect that result. The goal is usually to have your new vision
without glasses the same as your old vision with glasses.
The probability of eliminating the need for glasses and contacts
entirely and forever is small. Although Lasik can reduce your
refractive error, possibly eliminating it, your eyes will continue
to change after surgery at the same rate they changed before refractive
surgery.
At some point, virtually all of us will need reading glasses
for
presbyopia. This may be reduced or delayed with
monovision or other techniques, but presbyopia is a natural
part of aging.
Eventually virtually everyone will develop
cataracts
and need to have them removed, again adding to the probability of
needing glasses.
Is Lasik Worth It?
Literally millions of people are happy with their vision after
refractive surgery and delighted with the reduced need for corrective
lenses. There are also thousands who are very unhappy. As a percentage,
refractive surgery recipients dissatisfied with their results is
a small minority, but should be considered.
Ultimately, the decision is yours and yours alone.
What Else?
There are many different points to consider. We recommend you
browse around our website to gain a better understanding of the
different types of refractive surgeries, their effects, and possible
complications.
If you are ready to choose a doctor to be evaluated for conventional
or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik,
NearVision 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.
If this article did not fully answer your questions, use our
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