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What Is Lasik Eye Surgery?
It is an eye therapy operation that uses laser beams to treat myopic or astigmatic individuals. It is a technique that includes cutting the thin layer of your cornea and then treating the bothersome areas of your eye using laser light. Patients who undergo LASIK eye surgery have a higher chance of healing quickly than those who experience other procedures like PRK, No Touch, etc.
Before the Operation, What Should I Expect?
You must arrange an appointment with your ophthalmologist for a complete eye exam before undergoing Lasik eye surgery. In addition, your doctor will go over the surgery’s eligibility requirements and the risks and benefits of LASIK.
What Occurs Throughout the Procedure?
To numb the cornea during Lasik surgery, your LASIK surgeon will apply anesthetic drops in your eyes. Even though the procedure is painless, you may face pressure around your eye. A lid speculum tool will hold your eyelids open throughout the operation.
The method includes using a femtosecond laser to create a tiny flap in the cornea. A hinge will keep this little, carefully cut flap connected to the cornea, and it will be gradually pulled back to reveal the underlying cornea.
An excimer laser will be utilized to reshape the cornea to obtain the necessary vision correction. The flap will then be reattached to the cornea without sutures, and the cornea will be allowed to recover naturally.
The Price of LASIK Surgery
The typical LASIK cost varies depending on the surgeon’s experience and the modern laser technology utilized; it can range from $1,000 to $3,500 per eye, with no further expenditures associated with the surgery. In addition, while postoperative follow-up is usually included in the Lasik cost, the length of coverage varies.
Although health insurance typically does not cover the cost of surgery, LASIK can be paid for using health savings accounts and even flexible spending accounts. Be aware of establishments that charge only a few hundred dollars — this may be a ruse to get you in the door, but the service provided in this price range may not be the greatest.
How Long Does It Take to Heal?
Your ophthalmologist will do a quick postoperative eye exam after your Lasik procedure. It’s normal to experience a minor itch, burning, or gritty feeling in your eyes following the surgery, but this sensitivity should go away fast. In addition, your LASIK surgeon will prescribe eye drops and artificial tears to speed up the healing process and avoid infection.
You will be released once your ophthalmologist verifies the surgery’s success. You should avoid excessive exercise and contact sports for many days following your custom Lasik procedure and wear your eye makeup.
Your first follow-up appointment will be the day after your operation. At this appointment, your ophthalmologist will check to see if your eyesight meets the required driving standards, and you will be cleared to drive.
You’ll see your ophthalmologist again around a week following your procedure to make sure your eyes are recovering properly. Your doctor will assess whether or not any follow-up appointments are required at this visit.
What Are the Advantages of LASIK Surgery?
LASIK has several advantages, including the following:
Vision Enhancement
The most significant advantage of LASIK is that it improves eyesight indefinitely. In fact, according to one study, more than 95% of patients were delighted with their vision after Lasik treatment.
It Might Help You Save Money
While contact lenses and glasses vary greatly, they can easily cost up to $500 per year without insurance. Consequently, you should be able to recoup your custom Lasik surgery expenses within a few years.
You May Be Able to Avoid Getting an Eye Infection
LASIK dramatically reduced self-reported rates of eye infections, ulcers, and abrasions yearly compared to self-reported rates of persons who use contact lenses continuously, according to research in Ophthalmology.
What Are Some LASIK Alternatives?
The initial layer of the cornea is softly removed in PRK (photorefractive keratectomy), which is an alternative to LASIK. An excimer laser is then used to restructure the cornea to minimize refractive error. Finally, a contact lens is put in the treated eye for three to five days to protect the cornea while it recovers. Even though PRK takes a little longer to recover from than LASIK, patients frequently have the same visual outcomes.
Phakic-IOLs can help patients who aren’t candidates for laser vision correction due to a high prescription or other incompatible metrics (phakic intraocular lenses). Phakic-IOL is a surgically implanted lens used to treat moderate to severe myopia.
A tiny incision is formed in the cornea, and a thin artificial lens is placed in front of the eye’s natural lens. The lens is centered behind the pupil and maintained in place by gravity. As a result, patients do not feel the lens, and unless the lens is physically removed, this approach provides permanent vision correction.
Will I Require Reading Glasses in The Future?
Most likely, and that’s because practically everyone in their 40s has blurred reading vision but an excellent distant vision. The difficulty is solved by wearing reading glasses.
Monovision, in which one eye focuses up close and the other concentrates far away, also works. It can be obtained by contact lenses or laser refractive Lasik eye surgery. Please consult your doctor to see whether it’s appropriate for you.
