# Lasik eye surgery **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 4, 2004, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067 "2004-12-04T16:17:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/1 "2004-12-04T16:17:56Z")
I not sure which forum is right for this, but I’ll try here. I have been thinking of getting lasic eye surgery and I have some questions. How much does the surgery cost these days. Last I heard it was about $4000 for both eyes. Is that still the case? What is the difference between lasic I and lasic II? Is lasic II the best available preocedure? What is the success rate for the surgery? What are the chances I will have a bad result? What are the chances I will end up with better than 20/20 vision? Were can I find independent information on the best doctors who perform this surgery in the Chicagoland area? ---
**Author:** ![Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/aeb1de/32.png) [@Kel\_Varnsen\_Latex\_Division](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kel_Varnsen_Latex_Division)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/2 "2004-12-04T16:28:11Z")
And I did do a search but didn’t find some of these questions directly addressed. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/3 "2004-12-04T16:46:51Z")
[This will answer some of your questions.](http://www.lasikfyi.com/lasik_faqs.html) . I think your biggest problem for seraching may have been misspelling “lasik”. There are lots of lasik surgeon sites for Chicago and most offer free consultations. You will need to get one of those before you have it done. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/4 "2004-12-04T16:49:36Z")
I needed glasses from the age of four —nearsighted in my left eye, farsighted in my right, plus astigmatism and a lazy right eye. I had Lasik eye surgery this year. (I’ve never heard of “Lasik II.”) The procedure worked for me, in that I no longer need glasses to read or to drive. I did have to have a second, follow-up surgery to fine-tune my vision, but it went as easily as the first round. The whole thing cost me $5,000 for both eyes, including the follow-up surgery and follow-up examinations. My vision is not perfect, but the weakest reading glasses sold in the drug store are too strong for me and give me a headache; I might need prescription reading glasses in the future, but not yet. All in all, I think it was a good decision. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/5 "2004-12-04T17:24:11Z")
Mine cost a total of $2500 last February, and I went to the best doctor in the city. I ended up with 20/15 vision in both eyes (that’s better than 20/20). Really what you should do is start checking with local doctors. Any reputable doctor will have all the statistics for the surgeries he’s done available for you upon request. If they are reluctant to give you that information, I wouldn’t go there. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/6 "2004-12-04T17:36:35Z")
Did you see this thread in MPSIMS? Another Doper just got his done in the Chicago area. > **[After this weekend, I will see clearly...](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=289637)** > > Tomorrow (Friday) I go in for Lasik surgery. I’m a little nervous, but I’ve heard this guy is the best. He better be, I’m paying a lot for it. My perscription hasn’t changed in 3 years, the pre-op tests showed everything was fine, now all I have... ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/7 "2004-12-04T18:32:50Z")
The Food and Drug Administration’s website on Lasik is one of the most informative and least biased ones I’ve come across: [http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/lasik/](http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/lasik/) ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/8 "2004-12-04T18:55:38Z")
Mine was more than 3 years ago and it cost $2200. It’s sweet, man. One of the best things I ever did. ---
**Author:** ![ScoobyTX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@ScoobyTX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ScoobyTX)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/9 "2004-12-05T01:09:18Z")
I had [“Custom Cornea with Intralase[sup]TM[/sup]”](http://www.austin-eye.com/faq.html) about a year and a half ago. It cost about $5000 for both eyes, and took me from about -2 diopter in both eyes (mild/medium nearsighted) plus some astigmatism, to 20/12 vision in both eyes. Best investment I ever made. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2004, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/10 "2004-12-05T01:12:00Z")
There are some horror stories out there but everyone who I know who has done it would do it again in a heartbeat. I’m too much of a wuss though and I’m nearly blind without my glasses. Haj ---
**Author:** ![ridealong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@ridealong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ridealong)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2004, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/11 "2004-12-05T05:52:45Z")
Several sdmb threads on this, some quite recent. Search for lasik. People generally seem satisfied with their results. But not everybody: [http://www.surgicaleyes.org](http://www.surgicaleyes.org) [http://www.lasikdisaster.com](http://www.lasikdisaster.com) [http://www.azarok.com/archives/003485.html](http://www.azarok.com/archives/003485.html) [http://users.tns.net/~equity/lasiksos/introduction.htm](http://users.tns.net/~equity/lasiksos/introduction.htm) The surgeon’s competence and experience are critically important. Also, in some practices the surgeon him/herself provides all pre- and post-surgery care, and in others you only see the surgeon when he zaps you, and everything else is handled by optometrists and technicians. If you do it, check out credentials and make sure the surgeon handles post-op care. ---
**Author:** ![ridealong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@ridealong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ridealong)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2004, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/12 "2004-12-05T07:36:11Z")
Another anti-lasik site, including a report on a doctor who was using a non-approved laser that he built himself: [http://www.lasiksucks4u.com](http://www.lasiksucks4u.com) ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2004, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/13 "2004-12-05T13:48:52Z")
Prerequisite reference to 1920’s Style Death Rays. There. Didn’t hurt a bit. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ridealong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@ridealong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ridealong)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2004, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/14 "2004-12-06T09:25:09Z")
From another website, an article about potential problems with the laser units themselves, unrelated to the surgeon’s experience and skills. > **[Lasikon: Ratgeber für die Laser-OP am Auge in 2021 - Lasikon.de](https://www.lasikon.de/)** > > lll➤ Lasikon.de der unabhängige Augen Ratgeber mit wichtigen Infos zu ✔ Augen, ✔ Augen Laser OPs, ✔ Brillen, ✔ Kontaktlinsen I Jetzt kostenlos informieren! And the link to their home page: > **[Lasikon: Ratgeber für die Laser-OP am Auge in 2021 - Lasikon.de](https://www.lasikon.de/)** > > lll➤ Lasikon.de der unabhängige Augen Ratgeber mit wichtigen Infos zu ✔ Augen, ✔ Augen Laser OPs, ✔ Brillen, ✔ Kontaktlinsen I Jetzt kostenlos informieren! ---
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2004, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/15 "2004-12-06T10:05:05Z")
FWIW: In the UK at the [weekend](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1390686,00.html), it was announced that Lasik will not be supported by the National Health Service, citing safety concerns. “Last year the medical journal Ophthalmology said that the failure rate for eye surgery was one in ten, not the one in a thousand figure widely advertised.” ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2004, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/16 "2004-12-06T10:07:28Z")
> [@Kel Varnsen - Latex Division](#): > > I not sure which forum is right for this, but I’ll try here. > > I have been thinking of getting lasic eye surgery and I have some questions. How much does the surgery cost these days. Last I heard it was about $4000 for both eyes. Is that still the case? What is the difference between lasic I and lasic II? Is lasic II the best available preocedure? What is the success rate for the surgery? What are the chances I will have a bad result? What are the chances I will end up with better than 20/20 vision? Were can I find independent information on the best doctors who perform this surgery in the Chicagoland area? Here, have some anectotes. 1. Me: $2400 per eye, did both eyes on same day. I was seeing 20/30 the next day… the exact measurement drifted all over the map for the first 4 months, which was scary, but it settled down after that. I experienced dryer than normal eyes for the first year. After that, I have no other side effects except a greater sensitivity to irritation. I had my eyes done at a well-known center that had pioneered the technique. 2. My wife: roughly the same, except they undercorrected her vision. There is a margin of conservatism that they program into the burn routine. Burning off layers of your cornea is something like getting a haircut… you can always take off more, but you can’t but it back on. And your cornea never grows back. That’s the reason for the conservatism. Anyway, she has to go back for an adjustment 6 months after the procedure. Final word of advice… research, make sure you get it done at a reputable facility. And try really hard to get the best calibration that they can when they make you look at the little smeary dots. It’s called wave-front technology… you’ll learn as much as you need to know when you go in to have it done. Good luck… ---
**Author:** ![ridealong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@ridealong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ridealong)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2004, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lasik-eye-surgery/278067/17 "2004-12-06T10:18:18Z")
“Ten Common Sense Reasons Why You Should Not Have Lasik” [http://www.lasikinfocenter.net/General%20Articles/Ten%20Reasons.pdf](http://www.lasikinfocenter.net/General%20Articles/Ten%20Reasons.pdf) I have not had lasik myself, and I don’t personally know anybody who has had a terrible experience. But the more I’m reading about this stuff the scarier it gets. The bottom line is that glasses and contacts work fine for most people, and surgery is always a risk.