5 Side Effects of Laser Eye Surgery and How…

Laser eye surgery is a safe and super effective refractive surgery that helps people restore their vision to its initial perfect state or even better. Millions of people have given success stories of how laser eye surgery changed their lives. You can also be on your way to making the same bold statement.

However, as much as laser eye surgery sydney can help you see more clearly, it is essential to know that it can come with a few side effects. The good news is that you can minimize those risks or even prevent them. 

Usually, most of the risks and health complications that come with laser eye surgery result from incompetence or inadequate information about the patient’s health conditions. Hence, the best way to minimize or prevent risk is to work with an experienced laser surgeon with massive track records to show for it. 

Ideally, experts would have scheduled a date for questioning and answering to get every necessary fact that can aid problem-free procedure and produce an excellent result. You must be sure your optometrist examines you thoroughly at each consultation and ask essential questions at each stage 

Additionally, be sure that the surgery centre has all the required diagnostic technology, a friendly team of trained staff, and up-to-date surgery equipment. Also, you must be sure the surgeon performs all testing entirely and to a very high standard. 

Notwithstanding, you need to educate yourself about all the likely side effects that follow laser eye surgery when things don’t go as planned. This article will expose you to five side effects of laser eye surgery and provide ways to minimize or avoid them.

5 Side Effects of Laser Eye Surgery and How to Prevent Them 

1. Dry eye

Dry eye after laser eye surgery is typically a temporary phenomenon. Still, it can become a longer-term problem if surgeons don’t evaluate patients appropriately before surgery.

Dry eye after LASIK and PRK occurs because the artificial nerve endings on the corneal surface need to regenerate. The Cornea is a little numb and doesn’t have the sensation required to trigger tear production. Additionally, nerve endings produce chemical messengers.

Long-term dryness can occur if an underlying problem has not been diagnosed and treated adequately before surgery.

Symptoms: Grittiness, burning, fluctuating vision, pain

How To Prevent:

1. Ensure the surgery centre performs dry eye tests, such as Schirmer’s test for tear production and Tear Break-Up Time. Make sure your surgeon is also knowledgeable about dry eye.
2. Ask your doctor if you have Meibomian Gland that is still active to help to prevent tears from evaporating too quickly.
3. Before your laser eye surgery, consider taking re-esterified Omega 3 supplements to improve your Meibomian gland function.
4. Take preservative-free eye drops frequently after your procedure.
5. Take breaks from computer screens. Every 20 mins, close your eyes for 30 seconds and look out for 20 seconds – then you can resume work.

2. Halos and Glare

For some days before Laser eye surgery, ALL patients experience halos. That is because the fluid in the treated Cornea causes light to toss. Once the fluid clears, the halos vanish. However, some patients develop permanent halos following surgery and find their symptoms are worse at night (left-hand image). This problem is a product of induced aberrations which have delivered older forms of treatments that are not Aspheric in profile. The good news is that the issue does not occur very often. Everything is fine if patients are selected correctly and the correct treatment customized for each eye is delivered correctly. 

How to Prevent:

1. Ensure the surgeon measure your pupil size in dim light
2. Ensure your doctor is experienced in Laser eye surgery and understands the significance of high-order aberrations.
3. Ask your surgeon if you will receive an ASPHERIC treatment on your Cornea. Good spectacles have “Aspheric” lenses to provide the best quality vision. You have to be sure your physician plans to make your Cornea aspheric.
4. Ensure the surgery centre has laser technology that’s up to the minute.

3. Infection

Like all refractive procedures, there’s a risk of eye infection. Fortunately, the risk of eye infection in laser eye surgery is minimal. The disease risk from highest to lowest is LASEK, PRK, blade -LASIK and IntraLASIK, with a femtosecond Laser carrying the lowest risk. The risk of infection after IntraLASIK in excellent eye centres is 1 in 10,000 cases.

How to Prevent:

1. Go to a reputable centre which has an excellent Care Quality Commission (CQC) rating
2. Ask about the environment they want to carry out the laser eye surgery. Is the air filtered, and what is the exchange rate per hour? 10 per hour is the minimum required; many use 15 per hour.
3. Ask what antibiotics are used in preoperative preparation and during surgery. These antibiotics are powerful and eliminate a wide variety of bacteria.

4. Ectasia

This condition is where the Cornea is more elastic than usual and, following laser eye surgery, can become unstable. The Cornea becomes “ecstatic”; in other words, it bulges and thins over time. That results in a change in vision with the requirement to wear glasses initially. Astigmatism increases and causes continuing problems. Ectasia can occur in both Lasik and PRK/LASEK surgery. There are tell-tale signs on the Cornea that the surgeon can pick up using sophisticated corneal mapping, biomechanic checks and corneal epithelial thickness mapping

How to Prevent:

1. The best person to be able to determine whether you are at risk or not is a surgeon who has specialized in the Cornea. Specialized corneal surgeons have experience with Keratoconus, a condition where the Cornea is elastic and bulges. They are very familiar with the type of tests used to check for this condition and subtle signs of the infection.
2. Ask if three-dimensional tomography devices like the Pentacamare available to evaluate the Cornea.
3. Does the centre use biomechanical checks to determine corneal elasticity

5. Flap complications

Flap complications such as buttonholes, partial flaps, and irregular fragmented flaps have been consistent in Lasik laser eye surgery. 

After introducing the IntraLase femtosecond laser for the flap, complications are now rare. The use of the new-tech femtosecond laser is the golden standard. 

How To Prevent:

1. Ask the treating centre if they will use an IntraLase laser for creating the corneal flap in the LASIK procedure
2. Ask your physician how long they have performed the surgery and for how long they have used IntraLASE.

Finally 

Laser eye surgery is a new level of refractive procedure that is liberating. It is crucial that you make the right choice. Becoming well educated is a good first start. Next, find a good surgeon and eye centre who can deliver exceptional care. A good tip is to go where other eye surgeons go for care.

More to read: 5 Symptoms You Need Laser Eye Surgery

5 Symptoms You Need Laser Eye Surgery

Countless people are struggling with poor visions but don’t even know. Hence, they object when an eye caregiver suggests they enrol for laser eye surgery. Some can’t even wait at the mention of laser eye surgery. By popular claims, surgery is only meant for people with severely damaged vision, like partial blindness, farsightedness, nearsightedness, astigmatism, cataracts, and more. 

On the contrary, laser eye surgery is not only recommended for people with severe vision impediments. The procedure can fix the same issues requiring wearing glasses or contact lenses. Laser eye surgery provides a permanent solution for all numerous eye imperfections and saves patients from the inconveniences, irritations and discomfort usually experienced with corrective eyewear.

Is laser eye surgery the best solution to correct your vision? You will find out in this article. As you read, you will discover some common symptoms of vision imperfection that require you to book an instant visit with your optometrist for proper examination and recommendations. 

5 Common Symptoms You Need Laser Eye Surgery 

1. Unable to see clearly at night

Many people struggle with night blindness and don’t even consider it a critical issue that needs a quick response. Indeed, that can be dangerous. When impaired vision stays for too long, it worsens and may damage the eyes.

Are you also nursing the same eye problem? Let’s simplify things for you. If you find it challenging to see correctly at night, it can be a sign you need to enrol for laser eye surgery. Not only that, but difficulty seeing at night may also involve having trouble walking around the house, not being able to identify objects in an adequately lit space at night and more. 

You need to contact your eye care provider if you have noticed any of the above-listed symptoms. Laser eye surgery is the most commonly recommended refractive surgery to fix night blindness, whether partial or total. 

2. Having blurry vision and halos

Has it ever happened that you are forced to partly close your eyes to see one letter on your computer screen? That is a spontaneous reaction for people with poor vision to see more clearly when intense light comes from the screen.  

Squinting doesn’t only happen in the presence of bright lights. If you also have to squeeze your eyes when reading or watching TV anytime in the day, those are signs your vision is imperfect, and in that case, laser eye surgery can be your best solution. 

Additionally, if your vision is blurry or you see halos around every object when night falls, you need the professional help of a laser eye surgeon. Your vision becomes blurred when light doesn’t enter your eyes adequately. It can also be a symptom of myopia or hyperopia. Whatever it is, you don’t have to take blurry vision and halos lightly. Laser eye surgery can help restore your sight perfectly, enabling you to experience sharp vision all day and night.

3. Having frequent headaches or eye strain 

You begin to feel fatigued or have eye strain when your eyes feel heavy. It can also result from pains from the stressful activities of the day. In most cases, your eyes strain when trying to adjust to poor vision.

Also, the frequent adjustment of the eyes to poor sight can result into having recurrent headaches. And it can result in farsightedness or astigmatism when left for long without treatment. 

How does it feel to know that constant headaches signify poor vision? It’s almost incredible but factual. If you have been experiencing a symptom like that, you must consider laser eye surgery. Your healthcare provider will run a series of tests on your eyes and the entire body before recommending the best corrective option.

4. Can’t see road signs or perform tasks actively 

One of the simplest ways to know you need laser eye surgery is when you begin to have difficulty performing your routine daily activities. The eyes are the unique body part that takes the lead role when we engage in any activity. If something is wrong with your vision, you might not be able to perform excellently. 

If you find you find difficult to perform some critical daily routines like driving, reading, operating a computer and the like, you need to speak with an optometrist. Also, the inability to read road signs when driving shows you have poor sight. It also means you can’t see smaller objects. Laser eye surgery is the perfect corrective measure to make your daily activities easier for you.

5. You can’t cope with eyeglasses 

Of course, eyeglasses are an excellent alternative for corrective vision imperfection, but they don’t provide a permanent solution. Aside from that, eyeglasses bring a lot of inconveniences. You may also feel irritating sensations after wearing it for several hours at a stretch. 

No doubt, eyeglasses can limit your performance and restrict you from engaging in activities that give you pleasure. The need to wear eyeglasses day and night can be frustrating and make you sick and tired of life. If you have been looking for ways to get out of a boring lifestyle and feel free, you are indeed in need of laser eye surgery.

The procedure restores your vision to a perfect state and eradicates the need for any eyewear that may put you inconvenience.

Finally Thoughts 

Laser eye surgery can be the perfect solution to fix your seemingly minor vision imperfections. However, not everyone is eligible to undergo the procedure. It is essential to contact your eye care provider and enrol for examinations before deciding whether laser eye surgery is the most suitable option for you.