Lasik Doctor Consultation

There are so many great questions to ask your doctor during the consultation. Here is my top ten: Do you feel comfortable with the doctor? Have you met the surgeon who will be performing your procedure during the initial consultation? Is your doctor a specialist in the field? Has your doctor published papers and lectured nationally and internationally about this procedure? Has the surgeon answered ALL of your questions? Some you should ask include: Which procedure is right for... more

Have you had this treatment yourself and has your family had it too? (Doctors should eat their own cooking). Have you done at least 10,000 procedures? (Practice makes perfect!) Have you published at least 50 articles in the field? (Doctors who publish a lot are a community of experts that shares tips, techniques and new technologies long before they become available to the average doctor).

I think I have been asked just about every question in the book over the 16 years I have been performing LASIK. At your request, here are my top 4: Is LASIK permanent?......The answer is yes. The effect of the laser treatment will last the remainder of your healthy life. Is LASIK safe?.........The answer is yes. We have found LASIK to be multiple times safer than the long term wear of contact lenses. Are my eyes "routine" or are they "extreme"?..........this is more

You want to find a board certified ophthalmologist who is experienced in LASIK. It helps to find someone with at least a few thousand cases under their belt, but high volume alone doesn’t guarantee a good surgeon. Look for surgeons who use custom wavefront technology, and femtosecond flaps as opposed to older blade-created flaps. Find someone who other eye doctors recommend, especially surgeons who have operated on other eye doctors.

Fortunately, most qualified ophthalmologists can perform LASIK and the results have overall been excellent. It is important to have a referral to the doctor if possible from another patient, the word of mouth rule. Also, you want to have a doctor who has a number of years and many thousand cases if possible since experience counts for a lot in this area. Technology is important and I would choose a doctor with the blade free method available and a newer generation of laser. Also,... more