Things you should ask when considering laser eye surgery

Published on 15th June 2010

Many people who are thinking about getting LASIK eye surgery know that they want to experience better vision and have the convenience of not needing to worry about eyeglasses or contact lenses. The problem is that many people go into the situation not knowing much about it and not being aware of the questions that they should ask a potential LASIK surgeon.

When you go for your initial consultation to see whether or not you are a viable candidate, you can pose a few questions to your potential surgeon to see if they are somebody that you will be comfortable with. One of the first things that you may want to ask them is how many LASIK procedures they have completed in the past year or two. Consider that the procedure does not take a long time so they should have completed at least a few hundred over the past couple of years.

You may want to inquire with your ophthalmologist about what percentage of people end up with complications following laser vision correction. Obviously, if the number is too high then you might be dealing with somebody who is not at the top of their field. Conversely, they may give you a number that is too low and that might raise concern as well. If a surgeon tells you that complications never happen, then they are misleading you. Generally, the percentage of complications usually falls into 3% range. Serious complications are lower, approximately 1% of all procedures.

It is also wise to ask how many of the surgeons patients have achieved perfect vision following laser eye surgery. Again, if the number is particularly high or very low then it may be cause for concern. There are certain patients that have severe vision problems and they may not have 20/20 vision following laser vision correction.

Of course, the cost is important and this is something that you should also address with a potential LASIK eye surgeon. You might find that the cost is prohibitively high for you and if the cost is surprisingly low, that may also cause you some concern. Keep in mind that your specific situation may add to the cost of your procedure and they should be able to outline this

All eye surgical procedures carry a level of risk including not obtaining the desired outcome, through to varying levels of visual loss. Your eye surgeon will discuss the risks and benefits, including ones specific to your circumstances, at the time of your pre-operative consultation.