Personalized Questions To Ask Your Eye Surgeon Before Laser Eye Surgery

Most eye surgeries are now performed with laser technology. This allows for the surgery to be done more accurately, and it often leads to a shorter recovery time. Laser eye surgeries are all pretty standardized, and surgeons provide you with plenty of information and literature before surgery to ensure you're well-informed. However, there is some variety between patients. For that reason, it's a good idea to ask your eye surgeon the following questions before your procedure because the answers they give you may differ from those they'd give a different patient.

How clear can you expect your vision to be after surgery?

The hope is usually that laser eye surgery can restore your vision to 20/20, which is considered perfect. However, this may not be possible in every case. There are instances in which an eye surgeon can only restore vision to 20/40. It's generally still well worth having the surgery done in this case. However, it is nice to know in advance how perfect your eye surgeon expects the results to be so you're not surprised if you still need to wear glasses in certain situations.

How long will healing take?

Some laser-based eye surgeries are really easy to heal from. The procedures that involve creating a flap in the cornea tend to fall into this group. Others do come with a longer recovery period. Those that abrade away the surface of the eye tend to fall into this group. Healing also depends on your overall health and whether you have any underlying conditions, such as diabetes. So, asking your surgeon what they expect your personal recovery time to be will help you plan ahead.

Will the entire procedure be done with lasers?

Sometimes procedures that are termed "laser eye surgery" are, in fact, performed only partially with lasers. There may be a step, generally near the beginning, that the surgeon performs with a scalpel. This is normal and nothing you need to be worried about. But it is nice to know beforehand whether any scalpels will be used so you don't feel alarmed when you see one coming towards your eye. If your eye doctor tells you the procedure is 100% laser-based, then you don't even have to ponder the idea of a scalpel near your eye, which often comes as a relief.

Laser eye surgery is generally pretty easy for patients to endure. But asking the right questions beforehand ensures you're as prepared as can be. Contact a local eye surgeon to learn more.