After The Treatment
At the end of the procedure, some anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial eye
drops will be administered and a clear plastic shield will be placed
over your eye. You will then be escorted to lie in a reclining armchair
until checked by one of our nurses. The shields may be removed by
you once at home or the following morning, though they are required
to be over your eyes when you go to sleep during the first 24 hours.
The post-operative care will also be explained to you. We encourage
you to go home and sleep for a few hours to aid healing. The immediate
healing process is brief with little discomfort and usually a rapid
stabilisation of vision. However, the speed of visual recovery does
vary and depends on your personal healing pattern. Higher or more
complex prescriptions tend to recover more slowly. During this period
your eyes may water excessively and you may experience a gritty
sensation in your eyes. This is a normal part of the healing process
and often resolves by the following morning. Mild pain medication
such as Panadol can be used if necessary. In some, placing a cold
compress over the eyes is soothing. Most patients can resume a normal
schedule within a day or so.
POST-OPERATIVE RESTRICTIONS
You will need to restrict the activities mentioned below.
• Avoid driving for 24 hours or until you feel comfortable
• Avoid washing hair until the following day
• Avoid eye make-up for one week
• Avoid swimming for one week
• Avoid gardening for one week
• Avoid rubbing your eyes for one month
• Avoid contact sports for one month
After your treatment you may experience irritation and light sensitivity
but often this starts to resolve after a few hours rest. Your vision
improves over this period and depending on your refraction 90% or
more of your vision is restored by the next day.
Post Treatment Management
The fundamental aim in undergoing Lasik is to eliminate or substantially
reduce your dependence on glasses or contact lenses. The majority
of our patients do achieve 20/20 vision. Others may have their use
of corrective lenses reduced dramatically, only requiring mild prescription
glasses for tasks such as reading, working at a computer or night
driving. Results do vary from patient to patient and how well or
quickly your vision improves depends on your individual healing
pattern and the severity of your refractive error.
Over the age of 45 all people will have some difficulty with close
up vision. This is due to the natural aging process which occurs
in the lens of the eye. This usually results in the need for reading
glasses though this can be delayed with Lasik. This can be discussed
with your surgeon at your consultation.
THE NEXT DAY
Most patients have functional vision the next day. The majority
of our patients see well enough to drive a car without glasses or
contact lenses and most return to work. For most people, full visual
results are achieved within 1–4 weeks after Lasik.
THE NEXT YEAR
Around the world leading Lasik surgeons regard Lasik as a permanent
correction to your cornea. Our experience at the Australian Institute
Of Eye Surgery concurs with this observation. In most people, visual
stability is achieved within three months, and from then the shape
of your cornea is permanently modified. At 1 year vision remains
stable for virtually all patients.
YEARS LATER
Over 10 years of investigative trials have demonstrated that vision
remains stable. Once vision has stabilised it is rare for it to
regress. However there have been some instances of very late regression,
years after the procedure. Should this occur it can be treated with
a further Lasik procedure to restore distance vision.
Follow Up Care
Your first post-operative check will be conducted at the laser
centre or where you had your initial consultation. Further follow-up
checks are usually conducted at one month and at three months. Most
post-operative visits are of short duration and involve checking
the surface of your cornea to ensure healing is as expected, and
to measure your visual progress.
CAN COMPLICATIONS OCCUR?
While there are no reported cases of blindness resulting from LASIK,
no treatment whether surgical or medical can be completely complication
free. In a number of clinical studies the chances of having a serious
vision threatening complication has been documented to be less than
1%.
At the Australian Institute of Eye Surgery the chances of having
such a complication is much less than 1%. This is a result of our
surgeons’ vast experience and the sophisticated equipment
we use.
UNDER CORRECTION AND OVER CORRECTION
LASIK is very accurate but for significant refractive errors there
may be under or over correction. This is much less common with low
to moderate refractive errors. Undercorrection is more common than
overcorrection. Initially after most LASIK procedures slight initial
overcorrection is expected which regresses as your eye heals and
the cornea stabilises.
If either undercorrection or overcorrection persists then once
vision is stable both can be corrected with an enhancement procedure.
This involves further laser treatment usually between six to twelve
months after the initial LASIK procedure or when vision is stable.
Incidence of significant undercorrection 1–3%
Incidence of significant overcorrection 1–3%
Is Regression Possible?
Fifteen years of investigative trials with laser vision correction
have demonstrated that vision remains stable. However, some individuals
may experience a degree of regression.
Regression refers to the tendency of the refraction of your eye
to shift backwards to its pre-LASIK prescription.
If this does occur, when vision stabilises, it can be corrected
with an additional procedure. With LASIK, regression is usually
minimal for low to moderate prescriptions and is taken into account
when the laser is programmed to your eyes’ individual parameters.
The majority of people having LASIK require only one procedure.
Incidence of significant regression 0.35%
WHAT IF FULL EXPECTED VISION IS NOT ACHIEVED?
A small number of patients (usually those with high shortsightedness,
longsightedness or astigmatism) may notice a slight loss of sharpness
following LASIK. This may return over six to twelve months.
Incidence for shortsightedness 1%
Incidence for longsightedness 2%
NIGHT VISION
A small percentage of patients may notice reduced vision in dark
conditions. Usually these patients have had high myopia. Sometimes
patients may notice streaking of lights or haloes around lights
at night. These symptoms usually resolve after three to six months.
FLAP COMPLICATIONS
The Microkeratome that creates the corneal flap in LASIK is a precise
engineering device. An experienced surgeon will have very few flap
complications. These can usually be rectified at a follow-up procedure.
Incidence of serious flap complications 0.1%
GLARE
Increased sensitivity to glare may occur initially after LASIK and
resolve. Night time glare is more common.
Incidence of significant glare sensitivity 0.1%
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