You Can See Clearly Now With LASIK Surgery
Tired of wearing glasses and contacts? Prefer to wake up seeing everything picture perfectly? Want to toss your reading glasses in the garbage? If you are over 40 and have been told that everyone must wear glasses eventually, forget it. Get ready to see clearly now thanks to procedures that can correct your vision and make your glasses a thing of the past, like the pet rock.
“People over 40 can live to the end of their life glasses free,” said Dr. Jason P. Brinton, a Board-Certified Ophthalmologist in St. Louis, Missouri and recognized Top Doctor in the field of ophthalmology. “So, if you’ve been diagnosed with presbyopia -- and presbyopia is just a Greek word that means old eyes – it can be corrected with advanced LASIK technology.”
LASIK technology uses laser beams to correct the cornea, allowing it to focus better. That’s good news if you have been told that you can’t have LASIK because your corneas are too thin, your astigmatism is too steep or your glasses are too thick.
“In the past, the only solutions for, say, a steep astigmatism – where your cornea is more of a football shape than a circle -- were glasses or special contact lenses that counterbalance the refractive error,” said Dr. Brinton. “Today, that can be corrected with a LASIK procedure.”
Beware though, because just like every tissue is not a Kleenex, every laser refractive procedure is not LASIK. “It is actually an umbrella term, and some places only do one LASIK procedure,” said Dr. Brinton. “Now, there is a newer generation of surgeons who are performing all seven LASIK alternatives.”
“With LASIK procedures and alternatives, there are no shots, no needles, no stitches, no blades, no knives. You can go home with your eyes open and go back to work the next day.”
These seven alternatives will help patient’s nearsightedness and farsightedness and other vision issues. For example, the Refractive Lens Exchange (RLE) helps patients over 50 who have problems with their inner lenses – called dysfunctional lens syndrome. The RLE prevents them from losing their eyesight to cataracts.
If you’re ready to toss your glasses and are looking for the best LASIK surgeon in St. Louis, Dr. Brinton urges patients to meet with one who performs all seven modern FDA-approved options. “Otherwise you will be limiting yourself to only a fraction of available technology without even knowing it,” says Dr. Brinton.
During your examination, the ophthalmologist should conduct a comprehensive refractive surgery or vision correction evaluation to determine if you are a LASIK candidate. They will use seven non-invasive tests that take pictures of your eyes from different points of view. Based on the results, the surgeon will determine which procedure is best for you.
“But there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and LASIK is simply not the right choice for everyone,” said Dr. Brinton, who encourages patients to assess their surgeon’s candor and make sure he is open about the procedure’s advantages and disadvantages, benefits and limits. “Then they should give specific side effects for your procedure.”
Another misconception is that LASIK and LASIK alternatives are budget busters. While there is an up-front cost which can often be paid for with no down payment and no interest monthly financing, these costs are usually less than the lifetime costs associated with glasses or contacts.
After one 15-minute LASIK procedure, you can kiss your glasses goodbye forever. “Glasses limit everything and contacts have their own issues, including stress and irritation on the eyes,” said Dr. Brinton. “With LASIK procedures and alternatives, there are no shots, no needles, no stitches, no blades, no knives. You can go home with your eyes open and go back to work the next day.”
