My Surgery Consultation
Yesterday I went for the consultation for LASIK surgery. I was very impressed (the dr. who would do it is my eye dr. and has been for years).
The consultation took 3.5 hours!! First he came in and answered all my questions about possible complications, etc. Dazzling - he told me halos are very common, and then reminded me that I see halos when I wear my contacts too. He said the halos would be less than the ones from contacts, if I even have them at all. I can live with that possible complication.
Then the technician took pictures of my eyes and specifically of my corneas. This was to measure the thickness of my corneas. If the corneas are thinner, they use a slightly different laser. My corneas are of average thickness. They also did the 'spencer test' which measures the dryness of your eyes. My eyes are mildly dry. He does not plan to put in plugs (to block the tear glands so they eyes do not get too dry) unless it is necessary after the surgery.
My eyes were then dialated three different ways so he could make sure that the retina was healthy and there were no tears etc. He did a thorough exam and everything was fine. Because of something (honestly I forget what exactly it was) he is going to dialate my eyes during the surgery, which will mean that until the next day I will have a problem seeing things close up (just like when they dialate your eyes normally.)
All in all he said I was an excellent candidate for the surgery. The cost is $3300 which includes all follow up care for a year. If any adjustments have to be made to fine tune the vision it will be $150 per eye. The nurse said they used to charge $3700 for the surgery and adjustments would be free, but since so few people require adjustments they switched it.
One other thing - everyone I spoke to about the surgery has been tranquilized, i.e. valium or xanax while it goes on. My dr. does not do that because he says sometimes during the surgery he has to ask you to move your eyes, and wants the patient to be fully aware.
I scheduled for the 21st of February. I am really going to do this, and I have started saying the following affirmation:
"I will have a complication free surgery and quick recovery. My vision will significantly improve."
Sorry this is so long!! I am really excited!
PS-one last thing. For one week prior to the surgery, the dr. prescribed mild steriod/antibiotic eye drops (2 different kinds) and 1000 mg. of Vitamin C and 1000 mg. of Flax seed oil to reduce any inflammation of the eye and prevent infection.
Last edited by Tilly; 01-31-2003 at 11:08 AM.
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