Going into any surgical procedure starry-eyed should only be done after an exhaustive screening process. This will involve consultation with your surgeon about the side effects of laser eye surgery and how they could effect you.
In this article, we'll examine what some of those side effects are and while the risks are extremely low, it's wise to at least know they exist.
Side Effects Of Laser Eye Surgery
There is always the possibility of delayed healing and infection. The percentages are extremely low; just 0.1% of patients could expect this complication. In the majority of cases, there are no long term complications only some discomfort experienced becuase of the longer healing delay.
One of the more common side effects of laser treatment is what's known as over or under correction. The resultant effect is a patient may need to continue wearing their contacts after surgery or even have further surgery. Again, the long term effects are considered negligible.
Corneal Haze
Corneal haze is not usually a major problem. It's incidence is extremely low in Lasik or Photorefractive Keratectomy procedures however, the risk is always there that abundant haze could hamper a person's vision. This is one of the things your surgeon will discuss with you yet there is no major effect on your overall vision. It's considered as part of the recovery process.
One of the more frustrating side effects of laser eye surgery is post surgical regression. Simply put, it means a person's eye or eyes can return to the state they were in prior to surgery.
This means the procedure could have been a waste of time and you'll need to discuss the ramifications with your surgery. Can they guarantee against this happening and will another surgical procedure be required. These are just some of the questions you should ask during the consultation.
The Halo
This can effect both Lasik or Photorefractive Keratectomy(PRK) patients and can be a serious problem. It's particularly noticeable in low light conditions and occurs when another faded image is noticeable as the pupil enlarges. This can be a real problem for people driving at night.
These are just some of the side effects of laser eye surgery and while they are not life threatening, they need to be considered when consulting with your surgeon.
