Author Archives: Tom

PRK week 11 update

My vision has been pretty stable for the past few weeks. My left eye is very clear, I’d say probably pretty close to 20/20. My right eye is not as clear. I’m probably going to need a touch-up.

My doctor says that this is normal and not to worry–the procedure will be free. They will continue to monitor my vision monthly. When my vision is stable for at least six months they will schedule the next procedure.

Hopefully this won’t be necessary. It’s not impossible that my vision may soon get better in my right eye. I suppose I’ll just have to wait and see.

PRK 6 week update

So it’s been six weeks since my PRK surgery. Today I’m seeing pretty clearly. That said, I’m not quite finished healing yet.

Most of the changes in my vision in the last two weeks have been my ability to focus on my computer screen and other things up close. Halos and starburst around lights at night are almost gone. My ability to focus on things far away at night is a bit better.

In daylight, my ability to focus on things far away are unchanged in the last few weeks. I went deer hunting earlier this week and was able to spot deer and other animals a few hundred yards away, but couldn’t see them perfectly clearly as I did before with my contact lenses in.

I don’t have eagle vision yet, but then it’s only been six weeks. Most people take around three months to completely heal. Hopefully around New Year’s Eve I’ll have that 20/15 eagle vision that some people get. But I’ll be happy with 20/20.

I have no regrets. This is the best thing I have ever done for myself.

PRK

Two weeks ago I had the PRK laser eye corrective surgery. I wanted LASIK, but my surgeon said I did not have the right eye anatomy to safely do the LASIK procedure. He said to me, “Let me put it to you this way…if you were my brother or my son, we’d be doing PRK.”

Then I heard Miriam say, “OK, he’s getting PRK.”

Well, I guess I’m getting PRK instead of LASIK then. So I did it.

The actual laser correction part is the same in both surgeries. The cost is the same as well. The procedure is slightly different.

In LASIK, the surgeon cuts a hair-thin flap of the epithelium (the “skin” of your eye) which gives the laser access to your cornea. After the lasering the flap is folded back down, and the patient can see perfectly. You can go back to work the next day. This is the one that I really wanted.

In PRK, the epithelium is removed with a chemical and brushed away. After the lasering a protective contact lens “bandage” is placed on the eye for about a week, allowing the epithelium to grow back. Over the next several months the epithelium continues to grow and heal and smooth itself out. Total and complete recover differs, but in most patients it takes about 3 months.

So it’s been two weeks for me. My vision is good enough to be active, to work on a computer, to drive safely, to function as an adult. But my vision isn’t perfectly clear yet, that will come in time. When I try to focus on things I can see them clearly enough, but the details are slightly fuzzed. I have 20/25 in my right eye and 20/30 in my left eye.

My vision clarity fluctuates throughout the day and day by day. At different times during the day my eyes may be drier or blurrier than others. But overall, my vision is getting better, slowly but surely.

I wished I could have had LASIK, but I have no regrets. My surgeon’s endorsement of PRK and why it was better for me has me convinced. That said, I’m impatient for my healing to complete.

Any questions? Feel free to ask.