Santa Clara, Sunnyvale PRK, LASIK Refractive Laser Eye Surgery San Jose, Los Angeles

Surgery Information »

Refractive Surgery Comanagement

Our doctors work very closely with the eye surgeon to insure that the patient receives the best post surgery results. With PRK and LASIK, both eyes are usually treated at the same time. Once one of our patients expresses interest in refractive surgery, we spend time explaining the pros and cons for the particular patient. For instances when a patient approaches presbyopia, at about age 40, they need to understand what options for reading and working on computer are available after the procedure. For myopic patients, many choose to first have one eye not fully corrected so as to allow them to read and work close without glasses. Patients have a pre-procedure examination followed by a post surgical follow up.

Pre-Procedural Examination

Prior to surgery a patient has a comprehensive dilated examination with a cycloplegic refraction. The cycloplegic refraction determines what the patients "true correction" is. The patient will have difficulty seeing at near and be very light sensitive after the examination. Patients must not wear soft contact lenses for 48 to 72 hours or hard contact lenses for a minimum of 3 weeks prior to the procedure.

Post-Procedural Examination

The patient returns to our office the day after the procedure. And continues to returns at each of the post-operative times namely one week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months. After each follow-up our doctors work closely with the surgeon to insure that the best results are obtained.

What to Expect after Refractive Surgery

Before surgery is performed, patients need to know what benefits refractive surgery will bring to them and what it will not. For instance, LASIK provides for long-term structural stability due to the fact that these procedures do not weaken the structural integrity of the cornea. 95% of refractive patients can drive during the daytime without glasses or contact lenses. However, refractive surgery may not provide for vision as sharp as with glasses or contacts and that the patient may still find it important to wear glasses or contacts occasionally particularly in low-light or nighttime situations.