Jim,
I thought that I would respond to Jake G.’s letter on “Preparations for Eyesight & Hearing”. I feel I can offer a little insight (no pun intended) on eyesight and Lasik.
I had Lasik a little less than two years ago. I had just turned 43 and, after 22 years of wearing glasses or contact lenses, I was ready to make the jump. I didn’t take it lightly, as having any procedure contains some degree of risk, but having surgery on arguably the most important of your five senses is scary. I had been in love with the idea of ditching glasses for good, but I was not willing to have the procedure until it had been around for a while and was more comfortable with it. After many friends and relatives had Lasik, I researched eye surgeons in my area and found one with the facilities and qualifications that made me most comfortable. I wanted a physician who had done this before, many times before. The doctor I selected had done over 14,000 surgeries. I wanted someone who had seen almost anything before. I wasn’t pressured to have it done, nor was I even encouraged to schedule a date while I was there.
I went in for the surgery, accompanied by my wife, who would be needed to drive home. While I was in his office for a good two and a half hours, the procedure itself took less than ten minutes and was relatively painless. It felt like someone was pressing on my eyeballs for a few seconds. I left the office feeling great and had little discomfort, although many people say they feel like they have sand in their eyes for up to 24 hours. I had a follow up appointment the next morning and went to work.
From a preparedness standpoint, it’s the best thing I could have done. I am 20/20 in both eyes for the first time since I was 21 years old. I don’t have to worry about contacts in a field situation, nor do I have to worry about losing or breaking my glasses. I can wake up in the middle of the night and can confront any situation without fumbling for eyeglasses. It is very comforting.
As Jake stated, the potential change in one’s close up vision is an issue. I was gradually noticing that reading was a bit more difficult, particularly in low light situations, but I didn’t require corrective lenses. After Lasik, I noticed that I was having more trouble reading and I found that I was unable to read comfortably without reading glasses. I picked up several cheap pairs of “cheaters” from the local drugstore. It is true that people begin to notice a decline in their vision when reading sometime after age 40. Lasik can make it more pronounced. It has now been almost two years and my near vision has not worsened any further. Wearing glasses while reading is a bit of a pain and a concession to the advancement of Father Time, but the freedom from glasses in everyday life has been fantastic. I would highly recommend Lasik for those interested with the caveat that they do their research and choose a well qualified physician who explains all the risks to their satisfaction. All the best, – Ken B. on Long Island
Sir,
The discussion about Lasik and contact lenses prompted me to write about an alternative: implantable contact lenses (ICLs). The surgery is more-or-less the same as cataract surgery, except that unlike cataract surgery (which replaces the natural lens of the eye with an artificial lens), ICL leaves the natural lens in place along with an artificial lens. Because it is essentially a variation on cataract surgery, which has been around since the 1940’s, unknown negative long-term effects from ICL are unlikely.
The advantages of ICL over Lasik are several-fold. First, the result is significantly superior to Lasik surgery — vision is far more clear (mine is now 20/15) and with fewer and less severe optical “halos” (mine disappeared entirely within a few months of surgery).
Because you’re not changing the physical structure of the eye, you’re less likely to wind up with poor results.In fact, if you’re not happy with the results, the lens can be removed entirely and your vision returned to its pre-surgery condition. If your prescription changes, the implanted lens can be exchanged for a new one. If you develop cataracts, your natural lens can be removed and your artificial lens can be changed out if necessary.
During the surgery, local anesthesia is used along with a paralytic to prevent the eye from moving. This is a boon to those of us who have difficulty controlling our blink reflex. IV sedatives are also provided, making the surgery both pleasant and completely comfortable (as compared to Lasik, which is often described as “sucking my eyeball out of my head!”).
ICL does not impact your ability to participate in extreme activities: since my surgery, I have been both scuba diving and sky diving with no negative effects.
Finally, people who have been turned down for Lasik — such as those with corneas that are too thin for Lasik — may be eligible for ICL.
ICL is more expensive than Lasik; I paid $3,000 per eye in 2005. It cannot correct farsightedness, and won’t prevent the need to wear reading glasses (however, it will not increase the need for reading glasses like Lasik can).
I’ve had ICL for nearly four years now and I can’t recommend it enough. The web site for the group I used is www.GoodEyes.com. – E.