LASIK

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njord4

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Erik
So, every year about this time (annual benefits enrollment), I always start thinking about eye surgery. It seems like everyone I know is getting it done and the results have been great. I talked to my doctor today, and he said there is basically two different kinds of operations they perform. One is the traditional LASIK (peel flap of cornea) and the other is something called All-Laser LASIK where they don't even peel anything anymore and just use lasers.

I was wondering if the FAA chimes in on any of the surgery approaches? Are some of them not allowed and others preferred?

Thanks for any info,
Erik
 
I know it is done all the time with great results. However, I would question the risk. Unless your eyes are very bad, I don't know if I would risk it. I wouldn't want to be the "1" when they give the odds.

At my last eye exam the doctor was trying to sell me on lasik. I declined. I can pass the eye portion of the 3rd class medical without glasses (barely). I'm not going to risk good vision in search of perfect vision!
 
jhempel said:
I know it is done all the time with great results. However, I would question the risk. Unless your eyes are very bad, I don't know if I would risk it. I wouldn't want to be the "1" when they give the odds.

At my last eye exam the doctor was trying to sell me on lasik. I declined. I can pass the eye portion of the 3rd class medical without glasses (barely). I'm not going to risk good vision in search of perfect vision!
Click to expand...

It really comes down to whether or not you are a good risk. Everyone is screening patients nowadays for free. Go get several free ones.

Variables include slope of your cornea and the amount your pupil dilates. Later generation machines have larger zones of correction.

Why this is important is.. in the old days if the machine only was fda approved for 6 mm zone /disc of correction AND your pupil dilated to 8 mm in low light/dark condition, then your pupil is bigger than the correction and you WILL have halos.

A bad slope or cornea thickness will also artificially limit the zone of correction, resulting in the same complication.

If you are a good candidate, you SHOULD do fine. Get multiple opinions.

You WILL most likely have short term side effects.. 2-3 weeks.. they only count as complications if they persist. Hell of a gamble, I know....

But 3-4 weeks after mine, I was 20/15 and glasses-free and with a letter in my pocket for the AME. I sent the copy in to OKC, and disclosed on next medical. I have been un-restricted since.. and that was 9 years ago.

Best money I EVER spent.
 
Ron Levy said:
Wait for Bruce Chien's input -- he's on his way home from the AOPA Summit at Tampa.
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This question came up in the panel discussions from the audience.

Yes you can have it done. If you have monovision burn-in you are grounded for six months (one for near, one for far).

No, Four out of the five physician panelists, the Director of Certification, TWO panel members, and myself (oh, and Gary Crump) wear glasses. The director of certification just has near vision grannies. That should tell you something.

I regard Lasik as experimental insofar as when you finally get your cataracts removed, later in life, the tables as to what correction to implant have not yet been made. That will take about 15 more years before we have them.
 
jhempel,

Have you heard of or considered CRT(corneal refractive therapy)? I have been doing this for over 5 years with amazing results. My uncorrected vision is 20/40 which is the minimum to pass a driver's license exam. With CRT it is better than 20/15. No surgery risks as with LASIK.

Rick
 
In the early 1990's, after decades of wanting to not wear glasses any longer, I sought out eye surgery. LASIK was the new kid on the block and something I considered. But Radial Keratonomy (RK) was still being practiced with very good results. After looking at all the risk factors and the significant clinical data on long term effects of RK I went that route. My surgery did have a good outcome although I was the single corneal puncture for the year at that clinic. With over 3000 surgeries, I was the winner of a suture in the eye. That eye ended up with a small astigmatism. But I am 20/20 in one eye and 20/25 in the other. That has held for almost 20 years now. As I have aged I have had to start wearing reading glasses which was explained to me at the time of the surgery as being likely.

At the same time as my surgery a friend got LASIK. To this day he still has trouble and has to wear contact lenses or glasses. The surgical procedure has gotten much better but I am not convinced that it is the right thing to do. The long term effects are not known. RK has been around for almost 40 years and the related effects are well known.

One of the side effects is that pressure changes can affect vision. I have experienced very minor changes flying, more from swimming. The swimming changes have all improved my vision. The ones when flying are so minor that I hardly notice and since I now have to wear reading glasses are moot anyways.
 
B2Soar said:
Dave, Are both eyes still 20/15 after 9 years?
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I'm not Dave, but I had the LASIK done January 2002, so almost 8 years ago. Still have distant vision better than 20/20, but as I enter my mid-40's, I'm just starting to need reading glasses.

I had thought about LASIK for years before having it done, but was too chicken. Ended up having the procedure in Australia by an excellent ophthalmologist and I could not be happier with the outcome. No I didn't go to Australia just for that; I was working there for four months that year. Went on a 2-day rainforest hike, and my glasses were fogged up and sliding down my nose the whole time, so by the end of that excursion my mind was made up. The dr I found has satisfactory answers to all of my concerns, so that I couldn't come up with a reason not to have it done then. As a physician, believe me I had a lot of concerns.

Jon
 
B2Soar said:
Dave, Are both eyes still 20/15 after 9 years?

Rick
Click to expand...

I've been a bad patient and haven't been to an eye doc after my 6 month followup. I can still read the 20/20 line at the drivers license office.. and on the snellen charts at work (I'm a medical guy).



Now.. nothing about what Lasik did for me.. will prevent me from needing reading glasses in a few years.. thats due to aging and stiffening of the lens, which prevents close in focusing.. My lasik procedure corrected for cornea and misshapen eyeball (nearsighted and astigmatism)

I can either get a monovision procedure when that comes to pass (which dials one eye in near and leaves one for far).. or just wear reading glasses when needed.

Best money I ever spent.. but was nervous for a week or two til the halo's and starring of lights at night cleared up..
 
Unregistered-RK Patient said:
At the same time as my surgery a friend got LASIK. To this day he still has trouble and has to wear contact lenses or glasses. The surgical procedure has gotten much better but I am not convinced that it is the right thing to do. The long term effects are not known. RK has been around for almost 40 years and the related effects are well known.
Click to expand...

The early generation machines didn't track as well, and had limitations with regards to zone of correction, slope of the cornea, etc..

You are right that the long term effects of the later generation machines are not known, and the early generation machines are just now becoming known..

There are real side effects to the procedure. And if they happen to you, its not a trivial matter. That being said, I feel I was a good candidate, and had a great outcome.
 
Doggtyred said:
but was nervous for a week or two til the halo's and starring of lights at night cleared up..
Click to expand...

What is that called when you get the starring of lights at night? Also, against most backgrounds I can see at a 20/15 level, but on some of those eye charts the contrast between the letters and background make it harder to focus. It turns out being more of a 20/25 on those but at an actual eye doctor test, it's 20/20 or better.
 
njord4 said:
So, every year about this time (annual benefits enrollment), I always start thinking about eye surgery. It seems like everyone I know is getting it done and the results have been great. I talked to my doctor today, and he said there is basically two different kinds of operations they perform. One is the traditional LASIK (peel flap of cornea) and the other is something called All-Laser LASIK where they don't even peel anything anymore and just use lasers.

I was wondering if the FAA chimes in on any of the surgery approaches? Are some of them not allowed and others preferred?

Thanks for any info,
Erik
Click to expand...

Lasik was life-altering for me. I could not see, and when I got my PPL I was legally blind with corrective contacts.

I was one of the first patients at Emory to have this procedure. It was one of the best days of my life. I came out of the chair able to read the wall clock for the first time in my life. I could see traffic on the way home. I saw the Weather Channel without aid. The next morning, I could see my alarm clock for the first time. It was a happy time for me and my family.

Over ten years later, it's still a good thing.

Don't let government bureaucracy keep you from sight.

It's a precious gift.

Deb
 
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