Frequently asked questions about LASIK and PRK

Tremendous technological advances, borrowed from NASA, the semiconductor industry and the like have made LASIK so much safer than in the past.

Specifically, the sculpting laser works in nanometer precision. The pupil is tracked continuously, and the laser is re-aligned to the center of your pupil 500 times a second. That’s faster than your eye can move. The laser which creates the flap is calibrated to micron precision. 

In some ways, LASIK is more automated, but in other ways, requires more attention to detail. Similar to using autopilot to fly an airplane, technology makes it easier and harder at the same time. It is imperative to choose the right surgeon who understands the technology, pays attention to details, and knows the patient from the initial consultation. Learn more about LASIK Technology.

The good news is that the answer is no. LASIK is a quick and painless procedure that takes about 20 minutes to complete. LASIK is one of the most commonly performed refractive surgeries today. It treats myopia (near-sightedness), hyperopia (far-sightedness), and astigmatism to decrease or entirely eliminate the need for glasses. Hundreds of thousands of people get LASIK every year in the US and never look back!

Read our in-depth article of what to expect during LASIK surgery.

Multiple factors go into determining whether you are a good candidate for LASIK, including your age, your eye health, and your individual eye shape. A good candidate is one with a normal cornea and a prescription within certain bounds. Larger prescriptions require more sculpting and the surgeon must ensure that there is enough tissue
left at the end of the procedure to provide adequate tectonic strength.

Ultimately, a good candidate is one where the potential benefits greatly outweigh the risks, and whose individual goals can be met. Make sure you find an eye surgeon who takes the time to discuss these with you. Or, read more about whether LASIK is right for you.

Patients typically undergo laser eye surgery to reduce or completely eliminate their need for
contact lenses and glasses. In reality, most patients with excellent distance vision will eventually
require reading glasses at some point in their future. While laser eye surgery effectively treats
farsightedness, nearsightedness and astigmatism, it does prevent normal aging. All patients
will eventually develop presbyopia, a normal age-related condition that causes blurry near
vision and the need for reading glasses.

Depending on personal preference, there are options for older patients. Read more about what LASIK does not do.

To ensure optimal results, we encourage patients to take special care of their eyes, especially during the first post-operative week.

In the immediate 3-6 hours after LASIK surgery, we recommend wearing eye protection and getting lots of rest. We will provide a cushioned pair of goggles to be worn while asleep for one week in order to protect against inadvertent eye rubbing, and we’ll prescribe eye drops to prevent inflammation and infection. Most patients use these drops for about one week. We’ll provide you a full list of other recommendations and precautions post-surgery, which you can preview here.

Vision recovery for most patients after LASIK surgery is fairly rapid, though the timing depends on each individual’s pre-operative prescription and their body’s healing response. Most patients are able to resume their normal activities by the following day, including driving in a car. 

Read more about what to expect after LASIK surgery.

Tens of millions of people have had refractive procedures on their eyes and say it’s life-changing. While the risk is never zero, it is minimal. To put it in perspective, the risk associated with LASIK is now much less than of continued contact lens wear, and wearing contacts is considered a reasonable risk in society.

A surgeon’s greatest concern is always about making the procedure safe for you. After all, LASIK is an elective procedure on a vital, treasured organ. It’s a balance of risks and rewards. The surgeon must assess the risk for any patient individually, using tools and experience. It is comforting to know that at the end of surgery, what’s left is normal corneal tissue. There is no scarring, no foreign material: just a normal cornea with a new and proper shape.

Learn more about how technology has advanced in the last 25 years and how LASIK is safer now than ever before.

The laser is sculpting a new, precise shape, or curvature, to your cornea, by energizing and lifting off discrete layers of tissue. It converts solid material into gas. This is permanent. However, technically, it is a permanent difference from your underlying prescription. That is why we like to see your prescription stable before the procedure.

Nevertheless, minor fluctuations that would otherwise would have occurred will still occur. For instance, as one gets over 45 years old, age-related loss of near vision continues. The LASIK effect is just as true, but reading glasses may be necessitated.

Learn more here.

The simple answer is yes. The cost of contact lenses and spectacles overwhelms the cost of LASIK in just a few years.

At Wills Laser Vision, we charge a global fee that includes the surgeon’s fee, the facility fee, royalties to the laser manufacturers, eye drops, and other miscellany. The charge is the same whether you are getting LASIK, PRK, have
lower or higher prescriptions, have or not have astigmatism, need more tests, etc..

Many corporate facilities do not involve the surgeon until the very end and charge piecemeal for each service or upgrade. At Wills Laser Vision, we simply do the highest level of care and so charging for incremental upgrades does not apply.

When shopping for LASIK, remember the adage “you get what you pay for”. Some LASIK facilities you find on the Internet hire marketing firms that bombard you with discounts or “per eye” promotions as if eye surgery was like buying a used car. Make sure you do your research and find the best.

Wills Eye Hospital is perhaps the most famous eye institute in the world. The benefit of working with them is that Wills Laser Vision at Princeton always stays at the forefront of technology and education.

The pinnacle of technology is the Alcon Wavelight EX-500 with optimized and customized  sculpting ability and the Wavelight FS-200 femtosecond laser to create flaps, and they are found here. Moreover, the laser room stands above the rest in that it has a dedicated air handler with controlled humidity and HEPA filters for cleanliness.