Lasik Article from a Lasik Insider

When it comes to researching Lasik it’s often hard to know where to begin.

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This article will give you a brief outline on what to look for in a Lasik Doctor, what to look for in Lasik Technology and what to look for in a Lasik Pre and Post-Operative Care. I have been a Lasik Counselor for almost 4 years at one of the world’s largest Lasik Providers. I have had the opportunity to facilitate several thousand Lasik Eye Surgeries. I have talked with people across this nation and even some people overseas about their particular situations with their vision. What people need to know is that they need to research the actual Ophthalmologist who will be performing their Lasik Procedure very thoroughly. Many times the doctor you see for your pre-operative exam is not the doctor who will be operating on your precious eyes. You first need to find out how many Lasik procedures have actually been performed by the Doctor. You also need to find out how many of these procedures where conventional or traditional Lasik. You need to find out how many of these procedures where custom Lasik. You need to find out how many where alternative methods of Laser Vision Correction such as PRK, LTK, CK, epi-lasik, Lasek and others. Please make sure you research the educational credentials of the Doctor such as are they board certified? Is your Doctor certified by the Laser Manufacturer to operate the particular laser they want to use to correct your vision? You will also want to know what method the Doctor is going to use to create the corneal flap, which is the first step of the Lasik Procedure? Even Intra-Lasik or No-touch Lasik uses an Intralase Laser to create the corneal flap and then uses a spatula to scrap up the epithelia layer of cells. Please ask your Doctor if their medical license was issued in the same state where they are practicing? There are many doctors who will fly to many different states and perform lasik and they are not even licensed in that state. Make sure you have Lasik with a Doctor who resides at least a respectable distance from your home in case of emergencies or if Lasik Complications arise where you need to see the doctor immediately. Many patients find out the hard way that they may have to wait a couple of months to see the actual doctor who performed their Lasik Procedure. Do not make this mistake please.


The first questions I ask a potential Lasik patient would clear them from going any further into the Lasik inquiry process. I would ask are you pregnant or breast-feeding. If a woman were pregnant she would have to wait approximately 90 days before coming in for a Lasik Exam. If a woman is breastfeeding she will have to unfortunately wait 90 days after she stops the breastfeeding to come in for a Lasik Evaluation. The reason behind this is that hormone levels are changing in a pregnant woman’s body, which can cause vision fluctuations to occur giving unstable prescription readings to the doctor. If Lasik was performed on this type of patient they would probably end up having to come back in for an enhancement due to the fact their vision will probably change resulting in the need for a second Lasik Treatment. After clearing a potential patient of that issue I would inquire if the patient has had any previous eye surgery. If you have had previous eye procedures please inquire with your own doctor to see if he or she recommends pursuing Lasik Vision Correction. Usually Cataracts, Keratoconus and Keloid scarring will deem a patient a non-candidate for Lasik. Some patients with the early stages of cataracts may still be a Lasik candidate. If a patient has amblyopic which is also known as lazy eye there is a high chance they will be a non-candidate. However there are some Lasik Surgeons who will conduct Lasik on an Amblyopic patient. Once again please consult your own personal eye doctor for the best guidance for your particular vision situation. After clearing a patient of the most common vision disorders that would deem them a non-candidate I then try to pinpoint with the patient as to what there main vision problem actually is. I ask whether they have difficulty seeing distance where the are considered nearsighted or if they have problems seeing up close where they are considered either farsighted or presbyopic. If the patient answers back that yes they have a problem seeing up close I then know I need to determine whether or not they are either farsighted which is known as Hyperopic or if they have Presbyopia. The way I roughly determine is to whether or not is a problem with hyperopia or presbyopia is done in the following manner: First I ask the patient if the up close reading problem has been that way all of there life or if the up close problem had progressed over time. I ask the patient if they once had perfect vision. If the patient states that they once had perfect eyesight then most likely the patient may have presbyopia. Presbyopia is the natural wearing down of the muscle that focuses the cornea. As we all get older there is a chance we may need readers or cheaters to read up close. Lasik can correct for your distance vision and any astigmatism that you may have as long as your prescription falls within the range of what is approved by the FDA. There are really only a couple of options that can be done to correct the up close reading problem of presbyopia. Mono-Vision can be conducted where one eye is corrected for distance and the other eye for up-close. The two are melded together to form Mono-Vision. Some older people love Mono-Vision and some people can never become acclimated to this scenario. You will lose some depth perception with this procedure. The other is CK or Conductive Keratoplasty. This is just a more updated modernized version of Mono-Vision. CK uses RF Frequency witch are radio waves, which actually shrink or tighten the muscles that focus the cornea. This procedure will wear off or diminish over an average period of 5 to 7 years. Over time CK will have to be repeated to duplicate the original correction. There are also other alternative methods of correcting this old-age condition of presbyopia. There are certain lens implant procedures that can be done. Please check back to learn more on these methods of vision correction. After identifying one of these problems I then will inquire whether or not the patient may have astigmatism. There are different levels of astigmatism ranging from slight to a real high astigmatism. If a patient is myopic or nearsighted with no astigmatism this is usually the best type of Lasik Candidate and should achieve the best results after the Lasik Procedure. If the patient has a low to moderate astigmatism this also should be corrected with no major problems. If a person has a higher-level astigmatism they may be a candidate as long as their prescription falls within the level of FDA approval for treatment with the particular laser that will be used. It is also up to the Doctor whether or not he or she feels comfortable treating such a high level of astigmatism. There are many FDA approved excimer lasers out there. There are lasers that are specifically designed to treat high levels of astigmatism. The VISX Star 4 Eye tracker Laser, The Bausch and Lomb Technolas 217 A, The LadarVision Laser and The Allegretto Wavelight Laser are some of the powerful excimer lasers that can treat a high-complicated prescription. Sometimes a patient’s astigmatism is actually higher than the actual power of the prescription. This particular scenario would require one of these lasers. If patient is nearsighted with a positive astigmatism this is commonly known as a mixed astigmatism and would require a more advanced laser. Please visit www.LaserChoice.com to research Lasik Excimer Lasers approved by the FDA and other lasers used around the world for Laser Vision Correction.

The price for Lasik has been a hot topic over the past few years. There are many National Lasik Providers that advertise Lasik pricing from as low as $299 per eye. I can tell you that if you prescription is a nearsighted one and you do not have an astigmatism you have a great chance of getting a super price for the Lasik Procedure. Keep in mind Traditional or Conventional Lasik will be a lower costing procedure than the more advanced Custom Lasik Procedure. If you have a high prescription with astigmatism your price will probably be a little higher. If your prescription is hyperopic with astigmatism it will definitely be higher. The most expensive procedure is Custom Lasik and it’s even more expensive if you get the Intra-Lasik Custom Lasik done. This is the newest method of creating the corneal flap instead of your traditional Micro-keratome method. The microkeratome or Bausch and Lomb hansetome are hand held devices used to create the corneal flap in the first step of the Lasik Procedure. I will be going over the flap creation process with you. Many private single office Lasik providers will have much higher pricing due to the fact you will be receiving much more individual personalized care from the actual Lasik Doctor who will conducting your procedure. The cost of the laser will also come into play as well. Some National Lasik Chains will have great agreements with Laser Providers keeping the cost of the Lasik Key Cards Down. These are cards purchased for each eye or procedure from the Laser Manufacturer. This is how some Laser Companies get paid royalty fees for each patient. Nidek is a Japanese Laser provider which has FDA approved lasers that do not operate on this royalty key card system. Nidek sells their lasers outright with no royalty fees. This is why The Nidek EC 5000 is probably the world’s most poplular excimer laser. I would say the VISX laser is The United States most popular laser company. Please check back for the continuation of this article, it will be well worth it.

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