Laser Eye Surgery

Refractive surgical procedures are a safe and popular choice for those people seeking freedom from visual hardware. Refractive procedures are designed to eliminate or reduce the need for glasses or contact lenses.

These procedures correct refractive errors by changing the focus of the eye. Common procedures such as LASIK and PRK do this by reshaping the curve of the cornea (the clear front window of the eye) to move the point at which light is focused onto the retina (light-sensitive tissue lining the back of the eye).

When asking, 'What will make my vision correction a success?' the three major factors to consider are:

• The expertise and experience of your surgeon
• The safety, accuracy and sophistication of the equipment used
• The general standard of the treatment centre, the experience and dedication of the staff and the quality assurance processes in place.

It is also useful to know how many staff members and their family and friends have had eye surgery.

To find out more, contact Lasersight Centres on (03) 9663 0101 or email lynnem@lsca.com.au

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

AM I ELIGIBLE FOR LASIK OR CUSTOMEYES™?

Generally, a suitable candidate will be at least 20 years of age, have had a stable vision for the last 12 months, is not pregnant, is free of certain diseases of the cornea and retina and is generally in good health.

HOW LONG WILL THE PROCEDURE TAKE?

Each procedure takes only a few minutes on each eye but you will need to be at the centre for a few hours to ensure all pre- and post-operative checks are carried out.

WILL I BE ABLE TO THROW AWAY MY GLASSES?

Yes, in fact over 99% of our patients no longer need glasses or contact lenses for their vision in everyday life after LASIK or CustomEyes™.

HOW SOON AFTER THE PROCEDURE CAN I DRIVE?

Most people have vision that is legal for driving without glasses on the day of surgery. However we would recommend that you do not drive for a day or two after surgery.

DO I NEED TO TAKE TIME AWAY FROM WORK?

As most patients can expect 90% of visual recovery within 24 hours, you can return to work the day after your procedure. Minor visual fluctuations may occur during the first few weeks.

IS THE PROCEDURE SAFE?

LASIK and CustomEyes™ are considered to be very safe. Over 10 million cases have been performed worldwide in the past 14 years. In the hands of an experienced surgeon utilising state-of-the-art equipment the procedure has an extremely low incidence of complications that are significant.

Lens Implants are increasingly popular ands very safe, with Cataract surgery the most commonly performed eye procedure in Australia.

Conductive Keroplasty – to resolve age-related loss of reading vision in those over 40 – is approved by the FDA and routinely performed in a doctor's surgery in under 3 minutes per eye.

WHAT IS THE RISK OF COMPLICATION?

Like with all surgical or medical procedures there is a risk of complication. These are rare, and usually minor if they do occur. However, treatment should not be done if the patient cannot accept the remote possibility of a complication that could compromise the vision in an eye.

ARE THERE LIKELY TO BE ANY LONG TERM UNSUSPECTED SIDE EFFECTS?

This type of surgery, the procedure of creating the flap, has been performed for 40 years now and follow-up results show no side-effects. The excimer laser has been used on the cornea for over 15 years and there have been no long term effects documented.

WHAT IF I CAN'T KEEP MY EYE STILL ENOUGH OR IF I BLINK DURING THE PROCEDURE?

We use a small device to prevent the eyelids blinking. We have an active eye tracker which detects even microscopic eye movement and can redirect the laser beam as required.

WILL MY VISION BE CORRECTED FOREVER?

Once the cornea has been modified it tends to stay modified permanently. There can be occurrences of regression in the first three months, which can be corrected with an enhancement procedure. The vast majority of corrected eyes remain stable, permanently correcting near-sightedness, far-sightedness and astigmatism.

Near vision deteriorates in all people over forty. This deterioration is called presbyopia and occurs regardless of whether a person is short or long sighted, or started with normal vision. It can be corrected with Conductive Keroplasty.

The onset of cataracts in older age can also affect vision. Cataract surgery is one of the most common eye procedures in Australia and can fix this problem.

WHAT IS THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LASIK AND CUSTOMEYES™ ?

Like fingerprints, no two eyes are the same. When your refractive error is unusually affected, CustomEyes™ takes into account your own unique eye print, including all imperfections, and aims to correct these using sophisticated wavefront guided scanning laser technology. The result is vastly improved vision. The surgical experience for the patient remains the same for both treatments.

I WEAR GLASSES FOR READING. CAN LASER SURGERY FIX THIS?

Yes. Monovision provides independence from reading glasses and contact lenses. The word ‘monovision' literally means ‘one vision', in which one eye is focused for near vision and the other for distance.

Monovision is subject to individual adaptation and can be trialled with contacts or glasses prior to surgical treatment. Your suitability to monovision can be discussed at the time of your consultation with the ophthalmologist.

WILL I BE ABLE TO WEAR CORRECTIVE LENSES AFTER LASIK OR CUSTOMEYES™?

Most patients do not require any correction after their procedure. However, there is usually no problem if you do require a minor prescription. Contact lenses can be worn 1 month after the procedure.

CAN I HAVE CUSTOMEYES™ EVEN IF I ALREADY HAD LASIK?

Yes, it is possible to enhance your vision after having LASIK treatment. The benefit will be potential better distance vision and overall quality of vision.

IS CUSTOMEYES™ REPLACING LASIK?

CustomEyes™ is complimentary to LASIK treatment. CustomEyes™ maps the individual characteristic of each eye and helps the surgeon to design a custom LASIK treatment, which is useful for more complex cases.

IS CUSTOMEYES™ MORE EXPENSIVE THAN LASIK?

Yes, advanced technologies are usually more expensive as millions of dollars were spent in research and development to improve results and safety even further. Most patients agree that the superior visual results and safety is well worth the additional cost of approx. 10% compared to standard LASIK when considering CustomEyes™.

ARE ALL EXCIMER LASERS THE SAME?

No, the first generation lasers were called ‘broad beam lasers'. The results were satisfactory and still today a small number are used. Later, scanning lasers were developed where a small spot or strip of laser beam rapidly scans the cornea.

Nearly all lasers today are made of this type and most experts are of the view that there are significant advantages of flying spot lasers like the Bausch and Lomb TechnolasTM 217 used by Laser Sight.

Take your next step to visual FREEDOM. For more information, visit www.lasik.com.au.

back to top