There are a number of very good reasons to do your research properly and get as much lasik information as you can before you see your lasik doctor or surgeon.
While the idea of doing without eyeglasses or contact lenses is attractive, remember that:
- The process involves surgery, and surgery is never risk-free;
- The results are permanent;
- The possible side effects range from negligible to serious;
- The process is expensive.
That said, the lasik information you can find on this site and on the other sites listed will give you a very good base from which to make an informed decision. And your doctor will be very happy to be talking to an educated consumer.
Start at the FDA Site for Lasik Information
- Top of the list, at least because one can assume it is not driven primarily by commercial considerations, is the Food & Drug Administration site at http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/lasik/. The site introduction says its goal “is to provide objective information to the public about LASIK surgery”, and it succeeds admirably.
There’s lots of lasik information on the pros and cons of lasik eye surgery, on what will happen before, during and after surgery, advice on selecting a lasik center, and numerous other matters.
- You’ll find one of the most comprehensive lasik information sites at All About Vision, http://www.allaboutvision.com/. In fact, it provides much more than just lasik information and has a wide range of articles on all aspects of vision correction, from glasses to advanced Lasik eye surgery.
The discussions on Lasik procedures are solid and in depth; there’s also a two-minute screening test with a personalised report that will help you decide if you’re a good candidate for Lasik.
You’ll see a lot of advertising for various vision products, and even coupon offers.
- Next up is a site with lots of lasik information - AboutLasikEyeSurgery.com. You’ll find details on cost, a description of what the pre-op examination entails, the actual surgical procedures and finally post-operative care.
Assess Lasik Information with care
- At http://www.complicatedeyes.org/ you’ll find a site run by an organisation that says it is there specifically to cater for the needs of patients who have Lasik complications, and at the same time to provide more information on lasik complications for the doctors themselves.
The organization behind ComplicatedEyes.org is the Council for Refractive Surgery Quality Assurance (CRSQA); the organisation has generated some heat and controversy on the Web, so read and evaluate with care.
- If you’d like to see illustrated approach to providing lasik information in a simplfied way, try The Vision Correction Website at http://www.lasersite.com/.
It provides lasik information on matters such as how the eye works; the structure of the eye; the equipment used in Lasik procedures; and other procedures such as Intacs, PRK (which states for Photo Refractive Keratectomy) and Radial Keratotomy (RK).
More Lasik Information – College of Surgeons
- One of the professional bodies in this field is The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). If you want to find a certified AAO member in your area, to the web site at http://www.aao.org/aao/find_eyemd.cfm and use the search function.
You’ll need to enter your city, State and Country and then choose “Refractive Surgery” in the “Specialty” selection box; leave the “Last Name” box blank.
Accept the disclaimer, after which you’ll get a list of qualified refractive surgeons in your city.
You’ll see the letters FACS after the names of some of these members. This means they are also “Fellows” (members) of the American College of Surgeons; in competence and conduct.
- That wonderful resource Wikipedia has lots of lasik information at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lasik. There’s a good history section together with explanations of the lasik procedure, and information about safety and possible complications. They also provide you with some external links and other lasik information.
- One of the most-used pages on the Internet for those looking for health information is WebMD (the home page is at http://www.webmd.com/).
For lasik information, enter “refractive surgery” in the search box and you’ll find links to a huge supply of authoritative medical articles to help you research lasik eye surgery.
- And of course, you can always use search engines to scour the net to help you gather Lasik information.
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