Contents
What are the main refractive errors?
- Myopia: Distant objects are blurred, closer ones are sharply perceived.
- Farsightedness: The light coming from the objects is focused behind the retina, so blurred vision occurs both near and far.
- Astigmatism: The shape of the cornea or lens is curved and causes multiple images on the retina. Objects appear blurry at any distance. Many people have a combination of nearsightedness or farsightedness with astigmatism.
Goals of LASIK surgery
- In case of myopia, the laser must flatten the corneal curvature.
- In astigmatism, the laser regulates the astigmatism.
- With farsightedness, the laser increases the astigmatism.
Testimonial of a patient undergoing LASIK treatment
Patient with myopia and mild astigmatism
Before the operation
Before I went to the hospital, no special tests or examinations were made. But I should avoid putting on my eyes for a few days before.
Before the procedure, I did not take any medication for other diseases.
On the first day in the hospital, the doctor conducts some examinations:
- visual field test to diagnose glaucoma, inflammation of the optic nerve or tumor;
- Pachimetry to measure corneal thickness;
- Measurement of intraocular pressure.
In order for the procedure to be performed, there must be no glaucoma, infections or significant diseases. In addition, the corneal thickness must be determined, which must not be less than a certain value.
In total, the whole thing takes 3 days. On the first day the examinations are carried out, on the second day there is surgery and the day after is used for the control examinations.
On the morning of the operation
The procedure is very quick and takes only a few minutes. The doctor administers numbing eye drops, you are prepared and then both eyes are operated.
The preparation takes more time than the operation itself: you have to attach the hair with a clamp, lie down on a couch, wait until the local anesthesia takes effect and finally the eyelid holder is placed between the eyelids.
During the operation, you feel little or no pain due to the anesthesia. The doctor makes you look at a light.
You see a very strong light and the doctor tells you to fix a point.
You have to lie still and you are surrounded by a lot of light.
After LASIK surgery
The time after the procedure is very subjective. Immediately afterwards you have to stay seated in a room, slowly you begin to feel the pain and have the feeling of a foreign body or sand in your eyes. This is very unpleasant.
A roommate said that the time after the operation was child’s play for her.
For the first 2 to 3 hours, the doctor advised me to go to the hotel, stay in the dark and wear sunglasses; as a painkiller he advises: paracetamol.
Already in the afternoon, after the first 2 to 3 hours, I already felt a fast and continuous improvement.
That same evening I went to the restaurant and saw well, although not yet perfectly, because the accommodation of the eye had yet to take place. But I saw better than the days before without glasses.
The day after, a medical check-up is carried out. The doctor checks the values and then you can go home.
Theoretically, the patient can go home alone the day after the procedure and even drive on the highway.
On sunny days you need sunglasses for the first time, but it is recommended to use the sunglasses long-term.
The follow-up examinations take place after 3 months, after one year and finally after 2 years.
I went back to work after 2 to 3 days, the vision was a bit blurry nearby; on the computer, when reading documents or a book, the sharpness was not particularly good.
This is normal, as the brain has to get used to the new situation.
After about a week or 10 days I had reached the maximum result, before headlights and lights of other cars can be uncomfortable at night.
This is a very slight side effect that gradually subsides.
After the operation, you have to treat with Netildex (eye drops), then with moisturizing eye drops and a moisturizing gel for the night.
For the first 10 days, it is recommended to wear a firm eye cup so that the eye is not accidentally rubbed during the night.
The improvement lasts permanently; from the age of 40, of course, progressive presbyopia begins, as in non-operated people, but the distance vision (which is why I had surgery) should be preserved in the long term.
If the thickness of the cornea is sufficient, a correction can still be made in the future.
Long-term results of laser surgery on the eye
Most people improve their vision by at least 10/10 after the procedure, but LASIK brings different results.
Some people can only gain vision of 5/10 or less.
You may need glasses or contact lenses after laser correction, although vision is generally significantly improved.
The procedure has an excellent safety profile, but complications may occur postoperatively after LASIK, such as:
- Infection.
- Nocturnal dazzling (starlets or halos, which occur especially when you see lights at night, for example when driving).
- Incomplete healing of the incision in the corneal tissue, which may still be in a raised position one year after the procedure.
- Lamellar keratitis – It occurs when some foreign cells infiltrate between the “tab” of the cornea and the stroma, which is the underlying tissue; this syndrome is also called Sahara sand syndrome.
- Also, wearing glasses after the age of 40 may be necessary due to age due to a loss of vision in the vicinity, the so-called presbyopia.
This type of surgery on the eyes does not affect their size and color.
