Friend of mine just got an insurance plan from work that covers eye work. He wants to have laser surgery done, but wants to sort-of cost-shop. I know much of it is dependant on what procedures need to be done, but if any Dopers out there have had the surgery, and could give me some ballpark figures to give him, it’d be appreciated. Plus, are there types of surgery that anyone out there considers better / worse?
Mine was about $3000, both eyes, moderate to worse nearsightedness and astigmatism (+1.00 - 1.25)? Not the cheapest, but in the same ballpark as the other big places in town (Cincinnati). Very good result, although some astigmatism is still there. My vision is about 20/25 or 30 in both eyes now, from about 20/700 before.
My wife had it done late last year and it was $2800 both eyes. Her eye’s were not as bad as ShibbOleth, but she too had astigmatism, she is now 20/20 and no astigmatism. Oh and we’re in CT.
How weird is that? I JUST NOW started an almost identical thread : http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=191194 (sorry for bad coding, I’m in a rush).
I’ll be reading yours with interest!
Oh, and mine (being done Friday) is $3800, including all the follow up and exams. I have a very severe astigmatism, so it is more expensive than people who are just myopic.
AL
My SO had it done, it was $2500 - everything included. Some of the cheaper places make you pay extra for pre-appontments and aftercare, and that stuff adds up. Especially the after appointments, there were quite a few, and if he had to pay for all those appointments it would have been expensive.
BTW, his went well and he really is glad he had it done.
I had mine done in December- total of about $2100 for both eyes, including aftercare, but that was less that it would otherwise be, as the doctor was opening a new clinic here after moving down from Canada.
One of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I had myopia (20/150 and 20/300) with moderate astigmatism in both eyes. Now I’m 20/15 and 20/10 with no astigmatism. And I was surprised how easy the whole thing was, during and after.
I’d definitely suggest looking for the B&L Technolas laser, which I think has only been approved in the US for a couple years, and it’s not as commonly found. But I have largeish pupils, which make the more common VISX lasers less suitable.
I had both eyes done in October for about $2000. I was -7.50 in one eye, -7.75 in the other, and my doc got me to slightly better than 20/20 in both eyes on the first try, no touchups.
I’m not sure about what laser technology is better than others, but I was told that folks with blue eyes tend to have larger pupils - and some older lasers do not do that well for larger pupils.
I recommend checking around a few different LASIK places before choosing. He should het the pre-op eye exam a few times to make sure that he’s a good candidate. Get a doc with several thousand procedures under his belt.
Lastly, be prepared to deal with the temporary effects of the surgery. I had pretty nasty halos when driving at night for a good month after the surgery, so I pretty much refused to drive under those circumstances. Now, about 8 months later, the halos are almost entirely gone, and I’m quite satisfied.
I still get the halo effect, 3 years later. In fact, I was asked to sign a release because I have the “large pupils” you refer to…I’m hoping someday laser surgery can correct that problem for me.
FYI, in Dallas a couple of reputable clinics are advertising $500 per eye.
There is a new kind of no-flap surgery that is supposed to be way way much better. Might do some research on that…