Nearsightedness: Questions to Ask About Surgery
Nearsightedness: Questions to Ask About SurgerySkip to the navigationTopic OverviewLook for an eye doctor who has done a lot of refractive surgeries. Doctors who are
affiliated with a medical school or major eye clinic may have better access to
the latest procedures and technology. In most cases, an ophthalmologist, not an optometrist, will do the eye surgery. If you are thinking about having surgery: - Consider getting an independent second opinion by
talking to an ophthalmologist who would not be doing the refractive surgery
itself but could evaluate you as a candidate for surgery and recommend a
surgeon.
- Look for an eye surgeon who has taken several courses in
the procedure (not just a single course) and who has done at least 25 to 30
procedures. Ask what the success rate has been in these procedures. And ask how
satisfied the patients were with the results.
- Choose an eye surgeon
who will personally handle your care and follow-up after
surgery.
- Ask about your risk of halo or glare.
- Ask
whether you can look through lenses that will duplicate the amount of
undercorrection the surgeon expects you will still have after
surgery.
- Ask whether you will be able to wear contact lenses to
correct the remaining undercorrection. Some people are not able to wear contact
lenses after surgery.
- Ask whether the price of the surgery will
cover a repeat procedure if the first procedure undercorrects or overcorrects
too much.
- In the case of radial keratotomy (RK), ask whether the
surgeon plans to wait at least 6 weeks before operating on the second eye. That
way, any unexpected results in the first eye will be less likely to be repeated
in the second eye.
- In the case of LASIK or photorefractive
keratectomy (PRK), talk with your doctor about the risks and benefits of
correcting both eyes on the same day compared with doing one eye at a
time on separate days.
CreditsByHealthwise Staff Primary Medical ReviewerKathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine Specialist Medical ReviewerChristopher J. Rudnisky, MD, MPH, FRCSC - Ophthalmology Current as ofMarch 3, 2017 Current as of:
March 3, 2017 Last modified on: 8 September 2017
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