Have any of you had laser vision correction?

[Anne Williams]

I was curious how many of you have had laser vision correction done, esp. if you are over 45?

[John Kasaian]

Anne,

I pre- dated the laser thing by a couple of years---the Doc used a diamond scalpel on me and I was in my early thirties then(back when health insurance would pick up most of the tab!) What exactly do you want to know?

[lee nadel]

hi my wife is a painter always wore thick glasses she had the laser surgery 2 years ago and all she needs is the normal reading glasses as we all do in our late 50's but night vision is slightly affected especially when driving . if you had to wear glasses all your life it's definitely a miracle ! you can e-mail and speak with her if you like .

[kreig]

NO WAY!!!! I got only two eyes, i wear glasses, always have, i see 20/15 in one eye and 20/20 in the other with correction, and without glasses i can see just shy of 3 inches away. I am 55.

My friend (aged 51) just got his eyes "done" and he is having a lot of problems especially one eye, now blurry with no hope for a correction in that eye, he is NOT pleased!! The other is much better corrcted but he STILL needs glasses!! Go figure!! He cant drive at night.

Before he had his eyes "done" his only problem was the inconvenience of wearing glasses.

I know it works well for many people but can you afford to take a chance??

As i said before, No Way, i only got two eyes . . .

[austin granger]

One thing I've heard about possible side effects is a reduced ability to judge contrast. (!) Though the risks of such an outcome are undoubtedly very small, as a b+w photographer just hearing that was enough to scare me off the idea.

[Bruce Watson]

Personnally, I'd love to get rid of my glasses. But... the risk of not being able to see as well as I do now, with glasses, is still just too great.

If you've gotta do it though, you might look here:


http://www.cvs.rochester.edu/williamslab/vision_alliance.html

These guys are the ones who brought you the laser-wavefront proceedures. They seem to have a clue or two.

Every year I ask my eye doctor (Duke Med school - I've got a strong family history of glaucoma) about this, and every year he tells me the same thing. The doctors doing the surgery aren't yet letting their kids do it.

That, I think, ought to tell you something.

He tells me that he'll do it himself before he lets me. And he's still wearing his glasses. Sigh...

[Kaj Krinsmoe]

Technology might be perfect, but what about those who handle it?

If there is no official statistics of their performance then the circumstances are dubious.

Aldous Huxley cured his sight with yoga exercises. But this is something you have to do yourself and requires a daily effort. Its a bit the same as in religion, the right conceits will redeem you for sure, but enlightenment requires tedious practice of righteousness.

[Jon King]

I think Hogarth has it right. I've dealt with several eye doctors over the last few years, and none of them contacts, never mind laser surgery. Glasses on all. It tells me something.

[Anne Williams]

Our insurance will pay for it, so I've been debating it for a long time. Today, my trusty border collie and I went hiking with the 4x5 and now with getting to the point of needing bifocals, I found focusing to be more and more frustrating. Could I see better with my glasses and far away from the GG or take them off and be closer in? With the loupe and grain focuser I'm finding it hard to know whether to wear glasses or not.

Nothing seems right, but I also am generally risk averse about medical things that aren't a medical necessity. It seems that there are a lot of the general public who are very satisfied, but maybe the standards they need aren't as high as in photography.

[Harley Goldman]

Anne,

I had Lasik surgery done about 8 years ago. It has been really, really good. I have had a slight astigmatism slowly come back to one eye, but it is pretty minor. I have had no side affects at all. I would not hesitate to have it done again. The key is to research the doctors and be willing to pay top dollar to get a top-notch doctor. A lot do it at a discount, but who wants to go to WalMart when it comes to your eyes.