Eye Laser Surgery - would you do it?

[JayKeeley]

I wear glasses (I'm short sighted) and I can't be fussed with contact lenses anymore. So I'm considering getting eye laser surgery.

Has anyone had this done, or would they consider doing it? Messing with the eyes just sounds so risky to me....

 

[Demilich]

It has it's drawbacks does it not? I hear you lose some of your vision at night.

 

[AsModEe]

I would do it personnaly, and I plan on doing it in some years, once I have the budget for it. I know some friends who got the surgery and it worked well for them. It's also a lot less expensive then before (around 1000$ CAN per eye here)

 

[AsModEe]

It has it's drawbacks does it not? I hear you lose some of your vision at night.

I heard some stuff like that too, I should ask my friends.

 

[JayKeeley]

It's about $1500 per eye in the US.

@Demillich - there are side effects: your eyes dry out very quickly so for the first few months you need to carry saline with you (eye drops).

There are also some horror stories where people are left with "spotty" vision, literally meaning that they occasionally see spots. Thing is, this probably amounts to about 1% of patients.

It's all about calculating the risk

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

Ali, at this point, the technology has existed for 10 years, and there have been little-to-no common occurances of "poor" side effects. In addition to that, the lasers they use are already on the equivalent to a 4th generation. It's a near-flawless procedure, done in a chair, that takes about 15 minutes per eye.

As soon as I have a few extra bucks, I'm going to get it done on both eyes.

 

[AsModEe]

in chemistry, 1% is a lot.

 

[JayKeeley]

As soon as I have a few extra bucks, I'm going to get it done on both eyes.

Yeah, it aint cheap.

I don't think my insurance will pick up any of the tab, I'd need to check.

 

[Reign in Acai]

My buddy had it done, and he says it's worth every penny.

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

Yeah, it aint cheap.

I don't think my insurance will pick up any of the tab, I'd need to check.

I'm 100% certain they won't. It's still considered elective surgery. And if yours does, you're adopting me beatch!

Actually, $1500/eye is pretty durned cheap, considering it was over $4000/eye less than 3 years ago.

 

[JayKeeley]

Yeah, the girl in the office next to me (an ex-Reebok model btw) got hers done in Manhattan just a few months ago ($3900 for the whole deal). She couldn't use her insurance, and we work for the same firm so I assume I won't be able to use mine.

 

[Nate The Great]

My wife had it done and it worked perfectly. My brother, dad, and sister-in-law have all had it done as well. No side effects for any of them. They're all 20/20 now.

You will probably see some "halos" at night for about a month, and bright light will annoy you for a few weeks. Other than that, within 24 hours you will probably have perfect vision.

I'd suggest going to the best doctor you can find. Cutting a few hundred dollars off the price isn't worth it.

Oh . . . my wife and I saw Sin City about 36 hours after her surgery. She didn't like the movie, but other than that she had no problems.

 

[Six-winged Seraph]

I want to get it soon, glasses = not metal

 

[J.]

i'm just gonna get contacts if need be.

i know some people that have done it and the results are all positive.

 

[AsModEe]

Yeah, the girl in the office next to me (an ex-Reebok model btw) got hers done in Manhattan just a few months ago ($3900 for the whole deal). She couldn't use her insurance, and we work for the same firm so I assume I won't be able to use mine.

jesus christ it's so expensive in the US! We got it for half the price.

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

My wife had it done and it worked perfectly. My brother, dad, and sister-in-law have all had it done as well. No side effects for any of them. They're all 20/20 now.

You will probably see some "halos" at night for about a month, and bright light will annoy you for a few weeks. Other than that, within 24 hours you will probably have perfect vision.

I'd suggest going to the best doctor you can find. Cutting a few hundred dollars off the price isn't worth it.

Oh . . . my wife and I saw Sin City about 36 hours after her surgery. She didn't like the movie, but other than that she had no problems.

That's good advice all around.

Luckily there are several innovators of the procedure in and around the NYC area, so finding a top-notch doctor to do it shant be a problem.

 

[Thanatopsis123]

If there was anybody good in my area and I got it free somehow, maybe. Otherwise, I have no problem wearing my glasses.

Also, if it's only been around for a decade or so , how do we know about possible side effects down the road? It's not a necessity and glasses aren't a hassle so I don't really see the point.

 

[Russell]

I must say I'm happy switching between glasses and contacts, don't find it much bother. Plus glasses do suit some people. Basically, I wouldn't consider it myself, but that's a personal choice, I see no problems with the actual procedure.

 

[Krigloch the Furious]

I had it done in July of 2002 for $3600.
Came out with 20/15 vision. probably 20/20 now.
There is no pain at all. Its cool stuff, watching a thing come down and cut the cover over my eye was cool.
Then the 14z0R does a ticking sound for about 15 seconds then the eye is done.

 

[Krilons Resa]

I would do it in a heartbeat.