Often when faced with the possibility of undergoing a medical procedure, one finds that doing their due diligence is the best way to make an informed, intelligent decision about whether to take the risk. It is good practice to weigh the pros and cons in order to do what’s best. When it comes to Lasik Surgery, however, there are many, many ‘pros’ and few, if any ‘cons’ in undergoing the procedure.
Lasik is a procedure that restores vision in those people who suffer from nearsightedness, farsightedness or have astygmatism. (causing distorted and/or blurred vison.) Aside from enabling the patient to discard their old, cumbersome and unsightly glasses and/or their inconvenient contact lenses, there are many benefits to the procedure:
1.Lasik procedure yields immediate results. As soon as the procedure is complete, you will notice a remarkable improvement in your vision, which continues to improve throughout the healing process.
2. Lasik is a quick procedure, taking only five to fifteen minutes to complete in both eyes.
3. The procedure is essentially pain-free. Anesthetic drops are instilled in the eyes prior to the procedure and is the only anesthesia needed during the ‘surgery.’ There is usually no discomfort following the procedure, although some people have describe the feeling of having an eyelash in their eye. If this occurs, it is a relatively short-lived discomfort.
4. There is little if any ‘down’ time. Most patients are able to return to work the day after the procedure. It is recommended that patients rest the day of the procedure, in order to enable the healing process to begin.
5. The Lasik procedure restores peripheral vision; something that glasses cannot do.
6. The procedure is typically a permanent solution for visual disturbances. Most patients never need to wear glasses again or have a repeat procedure.
7. It is a relatively inexpensive process which can be deducted from a tax-deferred Personal Spending Account.
8. In addition to being relatively inexpensive, the procedure can ultimately save the patient money. The patient no longer has to spend money glasses, prescription sunglasses, contacts and related eye drops.
9. Complications of the Lasik Procedure is less than 1% and in those patients, complications typically merely include discomfort, as previously discussed.
10. Lasik is a life enhancing procedure. There is no more inconvenience of wearing glasses, having to use two different pairs of glasses, (one for distance, one for reading) not having to worry about losing glasses and not being able to function until they can be replaced, no more chance of corneal abrasions from contact lenses, being able to swim without glasses and actually being able to see!, being able to get up at night to go to the bathroom without having to search for your glasses…the list goes on and on.
If you are considering a Lasik procedure, be sure to find a qualified, experienced physician and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Once you’ve found the practitioner that you feel comfortable with and you take into consideration these top ten benefits, your only regret will be not having the procedure done sooner!
Photo via helgabj
