LASIK • PRK • Testimonials • Common Questions
A: While you can expect improved vision after surgery, the amount varies between individuals. 99% of Dr. Seidenberg’s patients can pass their driver’s test without their glasses or contact lenses (that translates into 20/40 or better). 93% of his patients achieved 20/20 or better vision after treatment in all refractive ranges without glasses or contact lenses.
A: LASIK and PRK are usually performed on both eyes the same day. In the event that this cannot be done safely, one eye will be treated at a time. If a patient’s second eye is treated at a separate time than the first, one of the following three methods is used to gap the transition period:
A: The time missed from work with a LASIK procedure is minimal. Most patients are back to work within 3 days. After a PRK procedure, most patients return to work anywhere from 3-7 days following surgery. It may, however, take as much as several weeks for the vision to become as sharp as it was preoperatively with your glasses or contact lenses.
A: The laser treatment itself is painless. After LASIK, most patients experience only some irritation, tearing and sensitivity to lights for a few hours. Usually, no pain medication is necessary. However, PRK patients commonly feel greater discomfort for a few days. These patients can be successfully treated with oral pain medications.
A: The unique 3D Active Trak element means that you no longer have to hold your eye perfectly still, which is a challenge for many patients. Instead, the laser automatically and instantaneously tracks the minute movements of your eye during the LASIK or PRK treatment.
A: It is essential that you understand as much as possible the limitations and risks. The risk of having a serious vision-threatening complication is less than 0.1%. Complications include under-correction and over-correction (which can be improved with an enhancement procedure), infection, healing haze, night glare, dry eyes, loss of best corrected vision and corneal flap complications.
A: Because Dr. Seidenberg has confidence in the stability of his patient’s outcome for life, he offers the following program:
If over time, your prescription changes, you will receive free re-treatments when they are medically advisable to help maintain your distance vision. (Hyperopic patients are covered for two years). Most myopic and astigmatic patients qualify.
A: Both procedures are highly effective in correcting myopia, astigmatism, and hyperopia. LASIK has several advantages over PRK:
A: This advancement became widely available in 2004. Standard LASIK/PRK and custom LASIK/PRK are identical surgical procedures with the exception of the way the laser treatment is designed. In the standard procedure, the treatment is based on your eyeglass prescription. Treatment in a custom procedure is based on a wavefront analysis performed with an instrument called an aberrometer. Wavefront analysis measures not only the eyeglass prescription in a highly accurate fashion, it also maps the irregularities of the entire visual system. These irregularities are minimized by a custom wavefront-based laser treatment.
A: Clinical studies have shown that Custom LASIK/PRK can improve not only what you can see but how well you can see it. In the past, all vision was measured using a standard vision chart. If you could see the letters, the doctor would proclaim your vision as a number, such as 20/20, 20/100, etc. But now, with Custom treatments, doctors are able to focus on the quantity and quality of your vision. Many patients who have had Custom treatments are reporting being able to see clearer than ever before. It’s as if someone had taken an inkpad and freshly stamped each letter on the vision chart in bold black letters. Because a Custom treatment corrects the unique imperfections in each individual’s vision, it is likely that night vision will be improved.
A: Dr. Seidenberg is the best person to tell you that. You should schedule a consultation with Dr. Seidenberg. Together, you can determine what is right for you.
A: In general, candidates for the excimer laser procedure must meet the following requirements:
A: Although most health plans do not cover Laser Vision Correction, it is best to check with your carrier. Many flexible benefit plans do pay for the procedure.
A: Extremely nearsighted patients, (over 12 diopters), may benefit from intraocular implants. Intrastromal rings can correct low degrees of nearsightedness, but don’t appear to offer any advantages over LASIK/PRK. In addition, inserting the rings are a more invasive procedure. Conductive Keratoplasty (uses radiofrequency), a laser by Sunrise (not excimer), and OrthoKeratology (wearing a hard contact lens at night) are advertised to correct farsightedness and reading. However, they provide only a temporary fix and retreatments are necessary.