I wanna know.  I have been a four eyes since 4th grade, and I can't stand the damn things anymore.  

Hate contacts.

The only advantage to the eye glasses is the constant eye protection to some extent, but my eyesight is to the point now that if I were to lose my glasses in the boonies I'd be screwed.

I can reference the time my father was out hunting and a branch swept off his glasses into a mudhole.  He spent 4 hours on his hands and knees sifting through the mud to find them because without he is blind.

Not my idea of fun.

SOoooo..

Is the laser eye surgury worth the potential hazards, will I be able to see as well as I do with glasses now (20/10), will i be able to see the front sight post as clearly?


ETA, Which "brand" is best, there are like 4-5 different types of it I think.

You do not want to go the cheapest, "best deal" route - you only have one set of eyes.  So, if you only have enough money to go with the older (I think its called radial keratonomy) procedure that results in you seeing halos around lights, etc, you should save up your money until you can get the more advance procedures.

If I was a candidate for LASIK, PRK or any other surgeries, I would do it tomorrow without hesitation or reservation. Coincidentally, my opthalmologist has the same type of myopia that I do, which is very difficult to correct for at the cornea.

I have a friend who had it done in 2002 and is now training to be a fighter pilot in the USAF!

A friend of mine had it done, says it's great, only complaint he has is that his eyes are always dry and needs to constantly put in eye drops to keep them moist (specially when watching movies or TV).

I've been wondering about this point for a while now as the most important thing that I've learned from training in the field is that I need to get my eyes fixed before I get deployed.  Glasses tend to fog up at just the wrong times--and those inserts for the promask suck.

Definetly get the surgery. I had mine back in march and I now nearly have 20/10 vision. It's the best money I've ever spent.

Don't bother with the bargain places, what you want is the Custom lasik with the Allegreto Wave laser and Intralase. The intralase part is critical. It produces measureably better results than the older methods. Yes, your eyes will be dry for a few months after the surgery. That's because the nerves have to regrow to tell your eye that it's dry and needs to tear. I've not needed any drops for quite some time now.

Here's some info on the proceedure from the place I went to:

www.hoopesvision.com/

Quoted: Definetly get the surgery. I had mine back in march and I now nearly have 20/10 vision. It's the best money I've ever spent. Don't bother with the bargain places, what you want is the Custom lasik with the Allegreto Wave laser and Intralase. The intralase part is critical. It produces measureably better results than the older methods. Yes, your eyes will be dry for a few months after the surgery. That's because the nerves have to regrow to tell your eye that it's dry and needs to tear. I've not needed any drops for quite some time now. Here's some info on the proceedure from the place I went to: www.hoopesvision.com/

So what did that run you as far as cost?

I've had glasses since 4th grade too. I'd be interested in seeing what everyone things about some of the newer corrective sugeries on the market.  I used to be a -8.25 and -8.5 dioper then I went to a -7.25 and -7.5 but my eyes are getting a bit worse now, last pair of glasses that I picked up($500+ dollars, no line bi-focals) were -7.5 and -7.75.  I'm blind as a bat without my glasses. Not that I can't see, it's just very, very fuzzy to the point of where I couldn't find my glasses if I ever droped them.  Oh well, tag for more reading later.  In Frith.

Had it done 2 yrs. ago, best $1800.00 I ever spent on myself. My dry eye gradually went away after a year or so. As said don't cheap out & look for cut rate service, your eyes are the only ones your gonna get

ETA I had Lasik

Quoted: Quoted: Definetly get the surgery. I had mine back in march and I now nearly have 20/10 vision. It's the best money I've ever spent. Don't bother with the bargain places, what you want is the Custom lasik with the Allegreto Wave laser and Intralase. The intralase part is critical. It produces measureably better results than the older methods. Yes, your eyes will be dry for a few months after the surgery. That's because the nerves have to regrow to tell your eye that it's dry and needs to tear. I've not needed any drops for quite some time now. Here's some info on the proceedure from the place I went to: www.hoopesvision.com/ So what did that run you as far as cost?

It cost me 4k. I was 20/375 in both eyes, and I had a 1.75 in astigmatism. We saved up our tax return to pay for a chunk of it, the rest we financed. Best money ever spent. It is a little steep. But I'm a computer animator by trade, and everything else I love to do involves sharp vision as well. I wasn't going to take a chance with my eyes.

Quoted: I've had glasses since 4th grade too. I'd be interested in seeing what everyone things about some of the newer corrective sugeries on the market.  I used to be a -8.25 and -8.5 dioper then I went to a -7.25 and -7.5 but my eyes are getting a bit worse now, last pair of glasses that I picked up($500+ dollars, no line bi-focals) were -7.5 and -7.75.  I'm blind as a bat without my glasses. Not that I can't see, it's just very, very fuzzy to the point of where I couldn't find my glasses if I ever droped them.  Oh well, tag for more reading later.  In Frith.

I'd suggest finding a specialist, they are really only the ones who can give you an informed opinion on what may or may not work for you. As far as my opinion, even if the proceedure didn't completely correct your vision, it wouls still greatly reduce your dependence on glasses.

thanks for the info nwmanitou.

I had it done. Love it! I can't tell you how happy I am with it. Mine was LASEK and had it done at a clinic that pretty much my whole extened family had it done at. Get a recomendation from people you know who have had it done. Also, beleive it or not the price is negotiable. My brother-in-law who's a doctor told me that and I saved about $1000 from the opening price. Go for the "free consultation" at a couple of doctors and get their prices and sales pitch and go with who you feel most comortable with.

I'd do it tommorrow BUT, I'm frickin' scared to death.
I don't figure they'd do it if I was self medicated to the point of a slab of meat....
I can't see laying there while my cornea is sliced and diced.
What kind of drugs CAN you get from the doc.
I'm a nurse, and I don't do eyes.

For 6k, being able to see again is definitely worth it.

Hell yeah it was worth it!!

I had it done 3 yrs ago and it is fantastic. It did take a bit of getting used to shooting rifle iron sights. The sight picture looked a bit "off". Can't really describe how.  After I got used to shooting without the aid of corrective lenses, I shot much better with irons.

After the surgery, my eyes itched like hell for a few days, just keep them flooded with the steriod drops you will get.

Please do not, do not, go cut rate on the cost of the surgery. You get what you pay for. Go to one of the centers that will give you a choice of referals. Do it. I did and got a bunch of positive feed back on the doc that did mine. Use a full range eye institute, that is what I did. I was kind of leery of using an eye doctor that does LASIK. I went to an eye institute that specialized in a full range of eye care.

You might get the "halo's" other people talk of. I never got them. My eyes became a bit light sensitive after the surgery. I can see very well in the dark now. Even more so than before the surgery.

Quoted: I'd do it tommorrow BUT, I'm frickin' scared to death. I don't figure they'd do it if I was self medicated to the point of a slab of meat.... I can't see laying there while my cornea is sliced and diced. What kind of drugs CAN you get from the doc. I'm a nurse, and I don't do eyes.

My doctor gives his patients Valium before the surgery. Plus they numb the heck out of your eyes before surgery.

Don't go to a cut-rate place. Make sure you are examined by the doctor who will perform the surgery. And make sure they check for everything, such as dry eyes, large pupils, etc.

Get on the web and do some research.


Dave

If your eyesight has been stable for at least a year (more likely two years) then you might qualify as a candidate.

Go to a doctor who is REPUTABLE.    And then get a second opinion from another reputable doctor who uses the same procedures and machines...    Compare apples to apples.

Also, from those in the know and who developed the devices, stick with VisX  or VisX Wavefront machines.   The wavefront is the newer and supposedly better technology.

I had PRK done, out of the USAF's wallet.  Wish I had done it 10 years ago.

One other side effect (besides dry eye, which went away after about a year), is the potential for halos around lights.  I get them, the only time they are really bad is at night, in the rain--kind of sucks when I'm trying to drive.

Three questions to ask your doctor:

1) How many surgeries have you done?  
2) Of those, how many have been successful, and to what level?  (the doctor I talked to said it like this:  1200 surgeries, of those 95% to 20/20, and 90% to 20/15).
3)  Of those, what has been the complication rate, and why?  (my doctor again:  less than 2%, all but one because the patient failed to follow proper post-op care instructions; that one was an unforseen problem with the patients eyes).  

These three questions should give you a pretty good understanding of how good the doctor is at this kind of surgery.

yea do it. Good vision is worth the $$$.

my vision was 20/100 and now its 20/15.

I had the PRk (free from the Army) and my recovey was a week, but with lasik your recovery will be a day or 2.

The only side effect was dry eyes for the first 6 months.

FREE

I always thought it would be funny to sneak into the laser room at my local budget eye-fixer place and start screaming my head off with people in the waiting room.

Come out the door clutching my eyes and have fake blood all over my hands.







I need surgory badly too.  My get headaches after more than about 6 hours wearing contacts and I hate glasses.

If you wanna see what the surgery is like, go to one of the places that do the surgeries and see if they'll let you watch.  The center I went to in Columbia, MD had a video feed coming out of the laser machine so that you could watch what was going on from the waiting room.  After watching a few of those, I was really glad I decided to get PRK since all they use is the laser and they don't have to cut your lens and peel it back

Most usefull thread of the year.

I went last week for the laser consult, and have been debating with the procedure.  Hope to get it done by end of summer.

I had the surgery two years ago, and am glad that I did.

One thing, your eyes may be dry after the surgery.  Find a good Flax Seed Oil suppliment and take twice a day.  I thought this was hokey and did the theratears & tear duct plugs with little relief.  It wasn't until I started taking the Flax Seed Oil that my eyes started moistening again.  I paid $100 for the plugs, $12.95 for the flax oil pills.  

I went to Nevius Eye Associates in Philly, I opted for a more expensive route (around $1800 per eye).

I am 100% satisfied.  Wearing glasses blows.

My wife's opthamologist disuaded her from having the surgery.  He said the corneas thin naturally as we age and by making changes to them when people are young, they risk having serious vision problems in later years.  

Have you tried the newer disposeable contacts? My wife is very happy with them. I still wear glasses but am seriously considering the contacts. To me, it seems the safer route.

I did corneal molding. 20/100 to 20/15. Wear hard contacts every other night, nothing during the day.

Quoted: I always thought it would be funny to sneak into the laser room at my local budget eye-fixer place and start screaming my head off with people in the waiting room. Come out the door clutching my eyes and have fake blood all over my hands. I need surgory badly too.  My get headaches after more than about 6 hours wearing contacts and I hate glasses.

Where I got mine done (reputable joint), they had the surgeries on close circuit in a room for potential patients to see it.  My wife and son watched mine.  The other people in the room were shocked as my kid, the professional comedian, started in "It looks like peeling a grape!"....

Definitely worth it.  I didn't wait on the .gov and paid for it myself.  I wish it was available when I was younger, though.



ETA  Triple nickel!!!

I'll add my two cents.

My wife had LASIK 3 years ago.

She still says it was by far the best money she ever spent.

Before surgery, she was worse than 20/400.

Now she is better than 20/20.

bump for night shift.

Tag. Thinking about it myself. Tired of fogged up glasses and contact lenses.

What does the military think about all of it?  I want to get it done really bad (and plan on it sometime next year or sooner), but I don't wanna count out any occupations in the Army, as I will be joining up next year, as well.  Being a pilot has already kinda been ruled out for me so I'm looking to go Airborne and maybe Ranger.

I had custom LASIK.  Best $3200 I ever spent in my life.  Pays for itself eventually with the money saved on contacts.  No problem here with night vision or bright lights.  In fact, I think my night vision is sharper than during the day due to pupil dilation.  The reticle on my ACOG is razor sharp when I look through it as well.

Don't skimp when it comes to your eyes.  Pick the best doctor in your area and be prepared to pay $1500-$2000 per eye.  Make sure you have at least 1 year worth of follow up included with the price.  Better yet, some doctors offer discounted touch-ups in the future if your eyes change.  It has been nearly 10 months since my procedure, and my visual acuity has remained 100% stable.  Not even a hair off during my last check-up.  20/15 in both eyes.      

I would recommend that before you get the procedure done you at least learn how to spell surgery.

Quoted: I would recommend that before you get the procedure done you at least learn how to spell surgery.

Wanna teach me how to wipe my ass too?

Quoted: What does the military think about all of it?  I want to get it done really bad (and plan on it sometime next year or sooner), but I don't wanna count out any occupations in the Army, as I will be joining up next year, as well.  Being a pilot has already kinda been ruled out for me so I'm looking to go Airborne and maybe Ranger.

The military has classified PRK as an acceptable procedure, but I think most services are still unsure about Lasik.  In fact, all the services are offering PRK for free to qualified members, on a prioritized basis; the military has decided it's an operational readiness issue.  A US serviceman can get into the fight quicker, and stay there, if he doesn't need to hunt for his glasses first, and is less likely to get shot while he's trying to unfog or wipe his glasses during a rainstorm.

PRK is about 25 years old with lots of case history to study.  Lasik is pretty new.  Also, PRK isn't an invasive procedure (they never cut into the eye itself with PRK, just reshape the outer surface of the cornea) and is therefore less risky than Lasik, even if just by a little bit.

I know the USAF is concerned about the effect of high-G maneuvers and decompression on a Lasik-done eye, since it actually got cut into in the procedure.  Wouldn't do for someone's flap to come detached in the middle of a dogfight. IIRC, though, they will accept Lasik for career fields other than pilot.

Got mine done in March by o ne of the best doctors on the West Coast and it was $3500 after their active/reserve military discount.

Went from damn near legally blind to 20/15...w00t!

Best money I ever spent.

My girlfriend is going for her initial exam today.  If everything goes well for her I will be doing it next.

what limaxray sez. it's a no-go for pilots cuz of the flaring (halo) effect, too. if you can, find a doc who was certified, graduated, and/or worked at johns hopkins. they are the best in the world, hands down. they invented it, perfected it, whatever you wanna say; they are the best.

when i got mine done, there were 3 seals getting theirs done for a navy test project. wonder how that came out?

I got it done last August.  Went from 20/400 vision with major astigmatism to 20/20 now.

It was very well worth it.  

I am a LEO and I had it done in 2000.  The only problem I have is when I get tired or my eyes get tired I do have the "halo" effect at night with the street lights.  My eyes were about 20/400 and now I am 20/20.  I have no problems shooting, see the target or front sight etc.  Do not go for the cheapest, shop around.  One place I went to even had a sugery on closed circuit tv so we could watch it.  Then the patient came out and we asked him questions.  Good luck and let us know how it turns out!  I had the LASIK procedure done.

I had LASIK done just over 3 years ago and it was probably the best $4,000 I've ever spent.  I had 20/300 vision in both eyes (stable for several years prior to the procedure) and came out with 20/20.  The doctor I went to was the most highly recommended/most expensive LASIK surgeon in my area but he was worth every penny.  He was the surgeon who trained most other LASIK surgeons in the area, so he knows his stuff.  Just don't skimp on the doctor you get, do everything they tell you to do post-op, and you'll enjoy crystal clear vision once more, like I did.  

bump

I just had it done.
The results are still developing.....
www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=113&t=377708

One of the newest things in laser surgery is Intralase. Instead of a mechanical device cutting the corneal flap, it's all done by laser. The precision afforded by complete computer control allows for a much thinner, more precise flap. It has measurable better results than the Microkeratone. Also, according to my doctor, who has done over 30k proceedures and helped develope the whole Laser eye surgery field, tells me they are now allowing military pilots to get the Intralase proceedure. I'd love to get this independently verified.

But as for me, I'm still nearly 20/10. It's been 6 months since my surgery.

I just had my eyes operated on with the PRK procedure.  It has been a few days but I am alreay noticing the improvements.  As others have said do your homework and find the best reputable doctor to perform the surgery.  The surgery in it of itself was very quick and painless.  Even though your awake the whole time it's being done, it's not bad at all.  Do follow your doctor's instructions for the various eye drops and go in for your post-op checkups.  My total bill came out to $3900.  I can't tell you how much of a relief it is to not wear contacts or glasses anymore.  I'm glad I finally decided to do the PRK.  I waited too long to not have it done.  

I am 13 months out from my Lasik surgery. I love it! I was 20/400 in one eye and 20/600 in the other, both with astigmatism. At my 1 year followup I was seeing 20/15.

I had the Custom Lasik with Intralase. It cost me $5k on a 12 month, no interest financing. I was fine the next day but waited one more day before going back to work. The procedeure itself is very easy and not painful at all.

They give you a small dose of Valium to relax you and some drops to numb and dilate your eyes. You kick back in a darkened room for a while and then they walk you into the surgery suite. You lay on one table and a laser cuts the flap and the doctor flips it back. Then you move 3 feet to the main laser table and stare at a red light for a minute of two. That's it.

They give you a sleeping pill to take when you get home that will allow you to sleep the remainder of the day and night. Next morning you will go back for a followup exam to make sure everything went right. You'll be wearing these gay goggles taped to your face for a day. After that you just put them on at night so you don't accidentally rub your eyes in our sleep. This goes for a week. You'll have a 1 week followup and then have to be careful not to rub them for about a month or so.

That's it, the whole time you will be seeing better than you ever thought possible. The only painful part is when they remove the tape around the goggles.  

I went to Dr. Thomas Tooma in Newport Beach, CA. He is the doctor that did Tiger Woods so I figured I was in good hands. My regular eye doctor checked me out and said "damn that guy does good work".

So I say go for it if you want to. Just find the best guy in the area (or go out of your area if you have to). Just don't fly, I think the pressure change might not be good for a fresh surgery. Remember to take out your extended wear contacts for at least a couple of days before getting your measurements done so your eyes can go back to their normal shape.

If you have any other questions feel free to email me.

Tom