Laser Vision Correction

[birdshit 0]

Hey yall, just had PRK (Photo Refractive Kercerectomy) done. This procedure is similar to Lasik, but instead of using a microkeretome to slice a flap in your eyeball and fry the goo underneath with a laser, they just fry the surface of the eye (ablate) with a laser instead. He said my corneas are too thin for lasik. Asshole. The pro is that there is no flap, ad therefore no risk of all the bad stuff that can happen when you have flappy eyeballs. The downside is that healing time is about 6 times as long, 10 times as painful, and it still aint cheap ($3,200).

My doc tells me that 2 weeks post-op I will have 20/20 and 6 months it may even get better than 20/20.

At any rate, I have been freaking blind for 3 days now, doing the hellen keller routine around the house and I am writing this in 72 point font so so I can see what I am typing. Blindness is definitely an eye opening experience and makes me appreciate what I hope to have back real soon..

Has anybody else had PRK done, and if so can you share your experience? 3 days and I still cant see shit. Slowly getting better though. At what point do I call my lawyer?

Thanks!

[nanook 1]

I got PRK. Three days is too soon to worry about results. I kept the house dark till the fourth day when I was able to see. Then my eyesight got better and better. Tomorrow things will get a lot better and the hurting will stop. Are you wearing a lens "bandage"?

_____________________________

"The trouble with quotes on the internet is that you can never know if they are genuine" - Abraham Lincoln

[birdshit 0]

Nah. I took a xanax, 3 motrin and some asprin and took the bandage lenses off. The was the dumbest thing I have ever done in my life. I ran out of cocaine drops and had to haul ass back to the doc to get some new lenses put in. I took them off again on day three cause the contact lenses were killing me. That is the reason I never wore contacts in the first place cause they irritate my eyelids.

Vision is a little better today. Hopefully is is going to get a lot better soon.

He said I could jump in three weeks. I can't wait! No more glasses!!! Cheers!

[ryoder 1,590]

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[BillyVance 34]

Surely by now we've learned that we can enlarge text on screen by holding down the Ctrl key and tapping the "+" key on the numerical pad.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[peregrinerose 0]

First, quit your whining... if you were truly doing the Helen Keller thing, you'd be on this web site with Jaws or Dragon Dictate or some other screen reader (if you don't know what those are, you aren't truly blind )

You have two fresh corneal abrasions, they will take time to heal up, longer than 3 days. What your doc said about your vision is dead on.

I have done many pre/post op workups of all of the refractive surgeries out there, and if it was me considering it, I'd do PRK. You couldn't pay me enough to have LASIK, the risk profile is too high. I'll put up with a week of irritated eyes to avoid the longer term issues. You made a good decision. In another week you'll look back and wonder why you were wimpering about it, and in a month, you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner, in 6 months you'll be singing the praises of PRK.

Hang in there, it really does get better. Remember, preservative free artificial tears are your friends.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[bodypilot90 0]

I spoke with someone who had LASIK and 3 years later they needed glasses (not for reading). Is this normal?

[Squeak 17]

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I spoke with someone who had LASIK and 3 years later they needed glasses (not for reading). Is this normal?

it can be, there are lots of cintributing factors, age being one.
that's why i have never had Lasik, i would only get it to get rid of specs long term, since i have worn specs for 41 years, 3 years is not long term for me,

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[hungarianchick 0]

On the other hand, I also heard of many patients complaining of cronic dry eyes and the 'halo' effect even after a year of undergoing PRK. I guess there is a risk with every procedure.

"I love cooking with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food."

[peregrinerose 0]

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On the other hand, I also heard of many patients complaining of cronic dry eyes and the 'halo' effect even after a year of undergoing PRK. I guess there is a risk with every procedure.

These side effects are much more common with LASIK than PRK. Dryness does improve with time (6 months to years) as the corneal nerves regenerate and can give the feedback to the eye to make more tears. The halos are better for people with smaller pupils, and pupil size tends to decrease with the accumulation of birthdays, so also may improve with time.

These factors is why I won't refer people that don't pass a schirmers' test (tear film production) or with large pupils for refractive surgery.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[peregrinerose 0]

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I spoke with someone who had LASIK and 3 years later they needed glasses (not for reading). Is this normal?

This is different from person to person. I won't refer for refractive surgery unless the person has had a stable prescription for at least 2 years. But the eye changes over the entire lifetime, refractive surgery can't change the normal aging of the eye... the changes in the refractive properties of the lens, cornea, etc.

Diabetes, pregnancy, and certain meds can affect Rx, so that may also be a factor. Some people become presbyopic (need reading glasses) earlier than 40.

With LASIK, the flap can be picked up and 'enhancement' surgery done, even years after the initial surgery, so that is an option for some people. If the Rx is very slight, and glasses wear just part time, it's not worth it to incur the risk of additional surgery for it.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[Zenister 0]

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Has anybody else had PRK done, and if so can you share your experience? 3 days and I still cant see shit. Slowly getting better though. At what point do I call my lawyer?

you dont,( call your lawyer ) particularly if you didnt read the warnings/instructions prior and then didnt follow them afterwards. I had ASA (very similar to PRK here) and while they tell you the 'optimal' results they should have also told you the 'long end' of recovery times (i'm sure it was in your paperwork) I was pretty much still staggering blind 4 days afterwards (on Monday, surgery on a Thurs, had told work I'd be back in as some people were.. I was not).. It worried me enough I called and the Dr sent an assistance to pick me up for another eye exam to illustrate and confirm that my vision and light sensitivity was improving, and made sure I had enough meds...

dont stress yourself or your eyes... take your drugs, sleep alot... listen to music... keep up your eyedrops... dont worry about seeing for a bit.. in 10 days (the 2nd monday) i was 20/20 and in 30 no halos at all even from stadium lights.. best money I've spent on anything in my life... no contacts no glasses...still 20/20 4 years later life is good...

____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

[billeisele 130]

i did the PRK route on one eye and had great results, could see the same day, mild discomfort for 1 day, it took 2-3 weeks to fully get used to having one eye for distance and the other for upclose - now I can't tell any difference

maybe the recover time is related to the amount of correction, i was a -2.5 diopter prior to correction

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[peregrinerose 0]

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i did the PRK route on one eye and had great results, could see the same day, mild discomfort for 1 day, it took 2-3 weeks to fully get used to having one eye for distance and the other for upclose - now I can't tell any difference

I always make my patients who do monovision refractive surgery like that to do a trial with it with contact lenses first, for several months. About 50% just can't adapt to switching eyes like that, losing some night/depth perception, and it's better to find out with contacts than it is to find out after you've permanently surgified your eyes

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[Balls 0]

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Surely by now we've learned that we can enlarge text on screen by holding down the Ctrl key and tapping the "+" key on the numerical pad.

I just learned something new

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....so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

[birdshit 0]

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Surely by now we've learned that we can enlarge text on screen by holding down the Ctrl key and tapping the "+" key on the numerical pad.

hahahahaha yep... at least in firefox... I don't use that other browser. The gay one with the blue E... I mean "gay" in the "happy" way for those among us who may be gay in the "naked twister" way

[birdshit 0]

Day 7... eyes are a little better. went a dr appt last night and they say my eyes are healing fine. I took out my contact lens bandages because they were killing me. I lied and said they came out skydiving... HA you should seen the doc... i think he may have shit his pants a little bit..

He said no skydiving. Then he asked me why anybody would jump out of a perfectly good airplane. I told him it was obvious he never smelled the inside of a skydiving plane climbing to 13000 feet.. Not exactly 'perfectly good' if you ask me. I'll take my chances with the black death rather than smell the recycled macaroni salad from my JMs... LOL

Anyhoo, vision is getting a little better. At least I can drive now. Got all of the top of the line supplements and drops and whatnot. My vision was 20/20 if I squinted hard enough and I am seeing everything in triplicate in both eyes. the doc says that this is because they eye is "lumpy" because of the parts that were burned off havent completely healed yet.

let this be a word of warning:

Lasik -> fine by the next day, but with a flap that can come loose at any time exposing your gooey inner eye to the hard cruel world.

PRK -> No flap, but blind and worthless for a week. You won't be able to work, unless you are a 900 phone sex operator.


Oh yeah, and make sure you read the fine print BEFORE they dilate your eyes, because those critical Legally Binding Documents just look like like white Squares when your eyes are dilated.

[virgin-burner 1]

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Surely by now we've learned that we can enlarge text on screen by holding down the Ctrl key and tapping the "+" key on the numerical pad.

where are the shortcuts for the deaf bastards around here!?

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[Andy9o8 2]

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At what point do I call my lawyer?

Oh, it's never too soon to do that.

[mnealtx 0]

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i did the PRK route on one eye and had great results, could see the same day, mild discomfort for 1 day, it took 2-3 weeks to fully get used to having one eye for distance and the other for upclose - now I can't tell any difference

I always make my patients who do monovision refractive surgery like that to do a trial with it with contact lenses first, for several months. About 50% just can't adapt to switching eyes like that, losing some night/depth perception, and it's better to find out with contacts than it is to find out after you've permanently surgified your eyes

Surgified... is that the technical term, Doc?

You spoke earlier of the side effects... I thought that the main side effect for the PRK was dry eyes? As I'm getting older, it's something that I've considered for the future, although my loss of vision at this point is slight (20/30 to 20/35 ish)

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[peregrinerose 0]

Surgified, of course, is extremely technical terminology I make up words all the time, like that as needed.

If you see 20/30 now, I wouldn't even think about refractive surgery... that's legal to drive in all 50 states. A 'successful' refractive surgery is considered 20/40 or better... you're already there. Honestly, you'd have a very hard time finding a surgeon who would be willing to touch you with an rx that low.

If it's just a little bit of nearsightedness, you'll actually love it when you hit 40. For almost everything, including reading, you'll do fine without glasses. You'd just need them for part time, maybe night driving. Why have surgery over occasional glasses wear?

PRK long term side effects are actually very low... some glare issues, decrease in contrast sensitivity, not as much with dry eye... the worst dry eye with that is immediately post op and improves significantly with time.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[skydiver30960 0]

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Lasik -> fine by the next day, but with a flap that can come loose at any time exposing your gooey inner eye to the hard cruel world.

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Is this true? Does the flap never heal? I figured it'd take a while since the blood supply to that part of the eye is so slight, but NEVER?

Elvisio "huh? I missed that part" Rodriguez

[peregrinerose 0]

The flap never heals back to 100% strength... not even close. Studies have shown that even 12 years after surgery the flap can be relatively easily moved. The edges of the flap do seal down, but the interface is much weaker toward the center of the flap.

This is why enhancement surgeries are sometimes done... they don't need to re-flap the cornea, they just peel back the existing flap and re mold the cornea if the Rx changes.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[mnealtx 0]

I *was* 20/15.... so 20/30 bugs the shit out of me!! Of course, all the time I spend in front of the computer now (work) probably doesn't help me either.

I wasn't planning on any sort of corrective intervention until I need it... just looking toward the future, so to speak.

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[peregrinerose 0]

Computer use does nothing to your prescription.

Your rx is based on the size, shape, and refractive properties of your eye. Using your eyes in any way (computer, sitting too close to the TV, reading in the dark, wearing/not wearing glasses, etc) can not change the physical properties of your eye's structure.

You're just getting old

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda