OT: Laser Eye Treatment

I have a friend who is an amateur astronomer, and he has had problems with "halo" effects around stars at night, caused by the treated area of the eye being smaller than the fully open pupils in his eyes.

Steve

2 people I know have had good results but their eyesight has deteriorated again after a year or so. They both feel it wasn't worth the expense or hassle.

mate in work had it done. He had it done 6 months before he got in the job and i trained with him a year after that and still good for him.

It was quite expensive tho.

Im going to wait and see how distinuished i look with glasses and then decide whether to get it done!!!

if you should have it done, but WHERE should you have it done!!

Dave

Not had it done, but thought about it & decided that while the risks might be low, the consequences were severe enough that I'd stick with glasses and disposable contact lenses.

AC. 8-)

I had it done on the day of the bomb attacks in London on 7th July.

It was the best £2500 I've ever spent! No more glasses and my vision is better than 20/20.

The procedure itself only takes a few seconds per eye. I found it to be very uncomfortable and I certainly didn't like the smell of my eyeball burning! However the staff were fantastic and I threw away my glasses that day and haven't needed them since. It took a few months for my things to finally settle down but I could still drive etc. I really wish I had done it years ago now.

I won't say with whom I had it done in case it's thought I'm schilling for them but I would imagine that all the organisations are pretty good.

My surgery was more expensive because i had some unusual defects. The average price for both eyes is about half of what I paid. There is unlimited aftercare and follow up visits etc. Can't recommend it highlly enough!

A

Yeah but with glasses you risk them damaging your eyes if you faceplant into something, and with contacts there are plenty of nasty infections that can take away your sight, so they're all risky..

Currently I have good vision and hearing sharp enough to hear cat scarers, not bad at the ripe old age of 36 ;-) I reckon I'd get the zap when my eyes finally start needing help to avoid having to wear stuff either near or in my eyes.

Neil Brownlee wrote: > Anyone had it done, and NOT got a good result at the end of it?

I looked at it.

Fortunately a mate who's an ophthalmic surgeon and cuts eyes up for a living was available to advise me.

It seems your eyes change in middle age (as mine have).

If you're short sighted it's not unusual for you to regain your reading vision in later life.

But...

If you have the surgery you still get the change later on.

So while, again if you're short sighted, your distance vision will be good but you may need reading glasses...

I didn't bother.

I now don't need glasses for reading...

Can only echo Adams comments below, changed my life completely, absolutely brilliant - should have had it done years ago. Didnt fancy the bacon slicer bit on the eyeball to cut the flap, so paid the extra to have the flap cut by laser. No probs at all - no halos - just slightly dry eyes after a long day especially on PC too long. But small beer for 20/20 vision

Regards

Tony L

I've been wearing glasses since aged 4 and Contacts since aged 11.

As I've got older I've become more comfortable with wearing my glasses but then you don't tend to get the shit ripped out of you as you progress in life.

I've considered the laser treatment but for two reasons I avoid it, firstly I'm a wus when it comes to sharks and freak'in laser beams, secondly my prescription is such that although I believe they may improve my sight I'd still probably need glasses... go figure!

I now find that the glasses are quite handy... on one hand I can look intelligent.. on the other I can look like one of the long lost Mitchell Bros. In my line of work both images have their advantages depending on what I'm doing at the particular time.

Lee D

And mine, either that or my arms are shrinking as they aren't long enough to hold a book to read anymore.

Eh? Short sighted means you can see things a short distance away, reading isn't a problem if you are short sighted, seeing the bus bearing down on you at 50mph is the problem...

I've been short sighted since about 7 and still am. Without my glasses

*maximum* focus is about 8" away. With them it's to all intents and purposes infinity, I can see the ordinary timber power poles against the sky over the top of Hartside about 4 miles away. Trouble is the lenes in my eyes are now hardening up with middle age and don't bend as much as they used to, so *minimum* focus with the glasses is 15". That 7" "dead band" is beginning to get annoying, I shall have to get bi- or vari-focals sooner rather than later. B-(

Must be bloody good glasses then ...

;)

On or around Mon, 08 Oct 2007 23:26:02 +0100 (BST), "Dave Liquorice" enlightened us thusly:

if you're short-sighted, your eyes gradually get "longer" with age, and you become longer sighted. This can mean that you no longer need glasses for distance.

If you start out not short sighted, you tend to need reading glasses (sooner). The point being made was that if you're short-sighted and have your eyes fixed, then you get old, you might end up needing reading glasses sooner rather than later.

A friend had it done 10 years ago, no trouble. After the op he had better than 20/20 vision, he says now not as good, somewhat less that

20/20. Wife had it done 5 years ago, no trouble, 2 good friends the same, but both of them had to return for second op after a few weeks. In both cases the return problem was sorted without ongoing trouble. Wife was advised to find someone who has the latest laser equipment and who has performed 200+ operations as the minimum level of experience,

Not I, I have worn glasses since beginning to drive 40 years ago, since then I appreciate their ability to protect my eyes.

My brother had the laser op successfully 3 years ago, had one eye set for long distance and one for reading, he says it works OK.

My wife who had very short sight from birth and wore contact lenses for 40 years, but then reverted to glasses, had an operation about 3 years ago but it was slightly different. The ophthalmic surgeon suggested that the benefits of laser correction were reduced as you approached 50 for various reasons. As the lens deteriorates and becomes cloudy (cataract??) with old age he recommended a plastic lens in my wife's case. This operation has been successful for long distance but she needs glasses for close work as there is no accommodation for focus (apparently something that happens in old age anyway).

AJH

Not sure, but I think Martyn's was laser treatment, but may be wrong, one eye went well, t'other caused no end of aggro.

-- "For those who are missing Blair - aim more carefully."

To reply direct rot13 me

bURRt the 101 Camper

200TDi Disco with no floor - its being fixed at last! 200 TDi Disco, "the offroader" 1976 S3 Lightweight

That's true, although the 'glasses' are all plastic - tough polycarbonate lenses which shouldn't shatter and weaker frames which should break away - in theory! I use one-day disposable contacts as I only wear them occasionally, so a 90 pair pack (which costs about =A390) lasts me for over a year with no additional solution costs and more importantly no risk of infection as they're only used once from sterile.

I must admit laser surgery does have some appeal, it's just that if it all goes wrong and I end up blind, even in one eye, I would be more than slightly pee'd off, seeing as most of what I do for fun needs good vision.

Cheers,

AndyC.

Well, I don't use lenses, but putting them in must surely carry a risk of some sort, as well as taking them out. The issue is, does laser surgery present more, less or similar a level of risk as the alternatives. Personally I don't know as I don't have any need to know right now but I'd look into that aspect of it if my eyes were going a bit.

I ask my optician once.

He stated a fact," you always see opticians wearing glasses! There is a reason for that!"

You can look up people's experiences on the net, but bear in mind of course that there's a good chance you'll hear about the horror stories more than is warranted. Best bet is to try and find blog entries rather than sites about medical horror stories ;-) Here's one for example;