What to Expect from Your LASIK Preoperative Visit

In order to be approved for LASIK surgery, your eye doctor will need to conduct a very thorough examination at your preoperative visit. The purpose of this examination is two-fold: first, your doctor must make sure you are a strong candidate for surgery. Second, if he determines you are in fact a good candidate, he will need to take certain measurements of your eye to help determine which LASIK procedure is right for you.

In order to be considered an ideal candidate for LASIK, you must meet certain criteria. Most importantly, your vision must lie within the acceptable correction range, and your prescription must have remained fairly stable over the past two years.

Your cornea also must have a total thickness exceeding 500 microns. This is important because the LASIK procedure removes part of your cornea in the reshaping process. It is essential that your cornea is thick enough to ensure that you have a sufficient layer remaining after the surgery.

Your pupil diameter should also not exceed 6.5 mm. This is important because pupils larger than this can lead to post-op complications, such as halos and glare during night vision.

If your eye surgeon determines that you meet the above criteria, he will then conduct a thorough examination of your eyes to determine the correct course of action for your surgery. As LASIK technology advances, there are a growing number of surgical options that cater to the specific needs of your individual eye issues.

Your doctor will use a machine called a phoropter to check your prescription. If you have ever gone to the eye doctor to take an eye exam, you are familiar with this device. You rest your eyes on this machine and focus on an eye chart across the room while your doctor uses different combinations of lenses to determine your prescription.

Your doctor will also examine the surface of your cornea using a dye called Fluoracaine. This dye will cause your cornea to glow under blue light, enabling your doctor to look for irregularities in your cornea. Detecting any irregularities in your cornea is crucial to the surgical process, since LASIK uses a laser to shave off a portion of your cornea.

If you are interested in considering LASIK surgery to correct your vision problems, you can use the links at the bottom of this page to find a qualified ophthalmologist in your area.

LASIK Surgery: Good For Linda Lusardi and Maybe for You

 

Linda Lusardi, a British model and actress who was voted the best Page Three Girl Ever in 2005 by readers of the tabloid The Sun, is unlike many of her cohorts in that she has never had any cosmetic surgery. She credits her ongoing good looks to a healthy lifestyle. The only elective surgery she has ever had is LASIK surgery, and even this she almost didn't have.

 

She recalls, "I had to wear thick glasses for reading and my eyes were so bad I was turned down when I first asked about [LASIK]." But one of the remarkable qualities of laser refractive surgeries is that it continues to change and improve. Just as PRK was replaced by LASIK, which was improved by Custom LASIK, intraLASIK, and even LASEK, the LASIK procedure continues to evolve, and one of the main features of its continued evolution is that people who could not have LASIK in the past can have it now.

 

Earlier this month, Lusardi went to a LASIK clinic and was treated. Although she was scared at first, she said, "the results were amazing." Lusardi's story is instructive. If you have been evaluated for LASIK surgery but told that you were not eligible, things may have changed, and you should be re-evaluated for candidacy.

 

If you are interested in LASIK in Dallas, Texas, contact the Carter Eye Center today to schedule a LASIK consultation.

Should Multifocal IOLs Be Covered by Medicare?

Cataract surgery involves the replacement of a clouded natural lens with a clear plastic one, known as an intra-ocular lens (IOL). As we age, the proteins in the lens degrade, which leads the clouding, and there is no way to restore clarity to the lens once clouded. The only solution available, therefore, is to replace the clouded lens with an artificial one that does not face the risk of clouding. Traditionally, monofocal IOLs--lenses focused at a particular distance--were used because technology did not exist to make lenses that could allow the eye to accommodate, or focus, at different distances. Because cataracts can lead to near-blindness in sufferers, cataract surgery is considered medically necessary and is covered by Medicare.

Now, multifocal IOLs, artificial lenses that allow the eye to focus at different distances, are available for use. The goal is to free people who have undergone cataract surgery from the need to wear glasses in order to see clearly at any distance other than the one determined for their monofocal IOL. Many patients with multifocal IOLs, such as the ReSTOR or ReZOOM lenses, are able to drive, read, and perform many other tasks without resorting to the use of glasses.

However, these new lenses are more expensive than the older monofocal IOLs, and Medicare considers the choice for a multifocal IOL to be an indulgence, so it does not cover them. But should it? Medicare part B pays for glasses following cataract surgery. The majority of people who have multifocal IOLs do not need glasses most of the time, making it reasonable for Medicare to drop the coverage of eyeglasses if it covers the multifocal IOL. Although not a perfect trade-off for the government in terms of cost, it is not so dramatic a cost difference as it seems, and if the price of multifocal IOLs continues to come down, we may see the two options leveling out. Covering both would allow patients to choose the lens right for them following cataract surgery.

If you are interested in receiving multifocal IOLs following your cataract surgery, contact us today to schedule a multifocal IOL consultation with a local cataract surgeon.

FDA Seeking Comments on Excimer Ban Petition

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received a petition to ban the use of excimer lasers for refractive surgery purposes. The citizens' petition was filed by the owner of lasikdisaster.com, and claims that "substantial deception in the labeling and an unreasonable and substantial risk of injury" represent sufficient grounds to ban the lasers.

The petition is not associated with the FDA's comprehensive investigation into the negative consequences of LASIK, including the psychological consequences of failed LASIK.

The FDA welcomes comments on the petition, which can be read online. Persons with a strongly positive or negative experience with LASIK surgery are encouraged to comment, since the FDA will consider all comments in evaluating the viability of the proposed ban.

Proponents of LASIK and related refractive surgeries claim the ban is uncalled-for. Glenn Hagele, executive director of the Council for Refractive Surgery Quality Assurance (CRSQA), says, "The suggestion that LASIK should be banned is not supported by science and ignores the vastly positive comments reported to the FDA" by his organization. In a CRSQA survey, 99 % of patients reported that their quality of life after laser vision correction is as good or better than expected, although 2 % report that complications from the procedure are frequently or always problematic (revealing that about 1 % of laser vision correction patients are very pessimistic.)

Laser vision correction is by far one of the most successful surgeries available, but there are a number of people who have experienced serious adverse effects. If you have had a positive or negative experience with laser vision correction, you are encouraged to respond to the petition.