Common Questions

LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis. It is a type of laser vision correction procedure that allows patients to be free of glasses and contact lenses. There are different forms of laser vision correction including LASIK, PRK and SMILE, but people refer to laser vision correction collectively as LASIK.

LASIK involves the creation of a flap, acting like a bandage for the cornea to be reshaped underneath. In PRK, the surface layer of the cornea (or the epithelium) is removed, and the cornea is treated. A bandage contact lens is put in place until the epithelial layer regrows and protects the surface of the cornea. Finally, SMILE involves the creation of a small sliver, called a lenticule, inside the cornea that is then removed through a small incision in the cornea.

Yes, the treatment is permanent. The laser permanently reshapes the surface of the eye. Some people say their LASIK wore-off. This is simply not true. Our eyes are just like every other part of our body and slowly change over time. As you age, vision may change slightly; however, this shift is typically not significant enough to require contacts or glasses again.

Most patients have little or no discomfort. While we will give you a sedative before it’s primary purpose to help you relax, as most patients are very nervous.

A typical laser vision correction procedure only takes a few minutes per eye! That’s right, only a few MINUTES. Setting you up and moving you to different parts of our LASIK suite for your personalized treatment is what takes the most time.

On the day of the procedure, you will be at our office for a few hours. In the pre-operative room, you will be given a mild sedative that will just help you to focus during the procedure. You will meet with the surgeon and he will walk you through the entire procedure, the post-op instructions (including all the drops you need to put in) and tell you exactly what you should do and expect. Our awesome team members will then walk you into the laser suite and recline you under the laser. A few bright lights and a cool light show later, your eyes will have been done and you’ll be in post-op, where the surgeon will take one final look, repeat the drop schedule and send you on your way. You are free to go home after that to rest for the day. Depending on what procedure you have, we’ll see you back 1 or 3 days later!

If you are a candidate for LASIK, your down time is usually just a day or two. Most patients that have LASIK or SMILE can see 20/20 the next morning and can even go back to work. If you are a candidate for PRK, downtown tends to be a little longer, usually about a week, while the epithelium heals. Despite the differences in down time, both these procedures result in excellent outcomes for our patients. In addition to this, you will also have a few weeks of activity restrictions depending on your procedure type. You will receive more detailed post-operative instructions at your consultation depending on your personalized treatment plan.

Yes! Most, if not all of our patients decide to have both their eyes treated on the same day.

In the past, it was important to keep your eye centered. Our modern lasers utilize active-tracking technology. These trackers scan the eye twice for every pulse that the laser fires. If you quickly move your eye, the laser will not fire until it is centered.

With any type of eye surgery, there is a risk of complications, including losing vision. However, this is very unlikely. Statistically speaking you are more likely to win the Powerball, twice. We have never had a patient lose vision.

Yes, although it is recommended that your vision be stable for a few years before having laser vision correction in the first place, like everything else in your body, your eyes will inevitably change with age. It is important to continue regular yearly eye exams to check your eye health and if you ever need your LASIK touched up, it is definitely possible.

After you have had LASIK, you will enjoy the luxury of being glasses free. Every human will lose their ability to see at-near, what we call presbyopia, by the time they reach their 40s/50s/60s. As you age, the lens is able to change it’s shape in order to allow you to focus at near and at a distance. With age, the lens loses this ability and this is the reason that glasses are needed for reading. So, if you have had LASIK in your 20s/30s, you may find that you may need reading glasses to see that tiny magazine font or even your phone. Make sure you keep up with your eye exams yearly

We screen all our patients for dry eyes before their vision correction procedure. This way, we are able to recommend different treatment plans for our patients depending on their results. A little bit of dryness after having your eyes treated is common, which is why we give you artificial tears to take home. Unfortunately, we do not have a crystal ball and cannot predict if a patient will have dry eyes, we are able to screen for and minimize the chances of it happening.

LASIK requires the creation of a thin flap. Originally, the only way to do this was with a metal blade (Hansatome or Microkeratome). A laser, different from the one correcting your eye (femtosecond laser), is able to make the flap without the use of a blade, creating the term all-laser LASIK. Some centers still utilize the blade method as a cost savings measure. All of our procedures are all-laser using a Zeiss VisuMax which is arguably the safest, fastest, most advanced laser available. .

Most people think that over time the price of LASIK should go down as the technology becomes more available. In fact, the opposite is true. Modern technology has been introduced that significantly increases the safety, predictability of outcomes, and accuracy of treatment and we’ve invested millions in these newer lasers. Additionally, many of these items require us to pay a license fee or royalty to the manufacturer for each patient we treat increasing the cost of LASIK over time.

Some less reputable laser centers have adopted a car-sales tactic of offering an extremely low price to lure patients in. They use some clinical jargon to explain why you are not eligible for this offer and attempt to up-sell you with add-ons. These centers typically charge a little more to offset the cost of their advertising. In many states, the attorney general has acted against this type of misleading advertising. More information is available on the Internet if you are interested.