Laser eye

[Devonian]

I’m 48 and my eyesight isn’t great. Had a recent eye test and they are healthy but optician has advised I probably should be wearing glasses all of the time. Last 3 or 4 years I’ve only needed for driving and tv.

A couple of friends have had eye surgery and said it’s worked perfectly for them. I looked at it a couple of years ago and never followed it up. Any tz thoughts?

[200mwaterresistant]

I had it 10 years ago when I was 30 years old. Serious it was the best thing I've ever done and would highly recommend it. Think it was Lasik with "wavefront recognition" or something - basically went for the best one at the time because, well, it's your vision isn't it.

It's like a miracle when you've had to wear glasses. In and out within an hour and can see without glasses, though you have to take it easy for a couple of weeks while your eyeballs heal.

Don't be fooled by any "lifetime guarantee" though, they make you go to so many super-inconvenient follow up appointments (even years after you've had the treatment done) that invariably you will stop going to them and at that moment the guarantee is no longer valid. They also basically close down and reopen the day after under a different name to end all the warranties if people actually start trying to take them up on them.

I don't know if I'd be brave enough to have it done again, my eyesight seems a tiny bit worse 10 years later but I still don't need glasses.

[jpjsavage]

I thought you were selling a laser eye! I'm first in line to buy that.

[Tenko]

Best get it done quickly as this is sales corner

[rdwiow]

As you wear glasses for a TV and driving, I assume you are short sighted (myopic), in which case given your age, use the myopia to hold off needing readîng glasses, once you have laser done, you will lose this advantage.

[dashfield]

I would love a laser eye. How much you asking for it?

[johnfoxllb]

[JasonM]

If it’s just the one laser eye, I’m out, I’d prefer a pair.

[Paul J]

Best get it done quickly as this is sales corner

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[walkerwek1958]

I would be very wary of doing it, particularly if your eyes aren`t that bad. Definitely take impartial advice from someone who really understands eyes. My concern is the fact that eyesight keeps on changing; having laser treatment as a 30 year old might seem a good idea but what happens when you're 50....or even 40? If you still end up needing glasses, albeit of lower strength, you've not gained a lot in my opinion.

Laser's good for anyone who's seriously short-sighted, they're always going to benefit, but they're in a relative minority.

What happens when presbyopia starts to kick in? One advantage of being short-sighted is that it partially negates the effects of presbyopia; in my own case, with a distance prescription of around -3 (moderately short-sighted), at the age of 60 I can still see very well close-up (around 5 inches) without glasses, so I don`t need them to read. As I understand it, had I gone down the laser route in my mid-40s I`d now be needing reading glasses and struggling to see sharply at less than 18-24 inches.

I`ve also heard concerns about night vision and bright lights causing 'dazzle'. Not sure whether this is temporary or permanent.

I considered laser treatment briefly, but decided against. I've worn contact lenses and glasses for many years but as I remain convinced I made the correct decision. .

Definitely seek an unbiased opinion from a specialist, not someone who's got a vested interest in selling you the treatment. My comments are based on my understanding, it's some years since I looked into it and I can`t claim to be 100% correct, but the 'what happens in later life' question is well worth considering. Once it's done it's irreversible!

[Mick P]

Ask yourself one simple question - How many opticians have laser treatment and the answer is hardly any.

Boring as it be, glasses are still the best bet.

[DavidL]

Here's my take and it's my line of work.
Best time is about age 25. Algorithms for myopic corrections are good and usually work out well. At this age you stand a good chance of having a decent period of spectacle free time. I'd say about 10-15 years.
The problem tends to be that a spare £5k at age 25 is a bit hard to come by so people wait.
However waiting is a problem as reading glasses loom in your early 40s. Those who are myopic know they read very happily without their correction and optically this won't change (usually). But if you remove your myopic correction artificially and are over 40 you will go, in sit down, get toasted, stand, marvel at your new found distance vision, pick your phone up and promptly go back to the opticians and buy some reading glasses.
Now if you're the typical TZer, loads of money and no issue with that work lark, its great. You can pilot your zonda and gulfstream just fine. Occasionally you may need to have a little help to see the bill at the Ivy. But back at your desk in the real world you rapidly realise you will have your glasses on almost as much as you did before so you can see the screen/paperwork etc

Ok so I'm being a little sarcastic but you get the picture. If you're a office based person over 40 you need to really decide if its worth it. It won't save you money. If you do a lot of outside work/recreation it may be worthy of careful consideration.

On top of that you have only had one refractive surface altered and the other, your lens, is going to change as you age and will change your prescription so your spectacle free period may be more short lived. Also if you have had refractive surgery cataract surgery can be clinically more difficult to achieve a good outcome.

On top of that sadly not all procedures work as they should. Not many but there are no guarantees.

Yes there are multifocal procedures, implants, monovision etc but that adds more complication to the above.
It is without doubt where it's going but IMHO its not there yet. I wouldn't consider it at the moment but it's where technology is going.

[sevvy]

This thread interests me enormously as I’m 55, short sighted with -8.5 prescription, varifocal glasses and contacts that are useless the minute I start to read anything close up. Varifocal contacts aren’t available at my prescription strength.
Even at my last eye test, the optician suggested laser treatment and I know I’d still need reading glasses but I’d still see that as heaven compared to my current situation.
ive been thinking about laser treatment more and more this past couple of years

[Omegamanic]

I have had two corrective surgeries, I'll be having another - no worries whatsoever!

My eye sight needed a slight adjustment after the first surgery, but was then perfect for years, until a had a neurological episode - now in around -.75 so I'll be having it done again to correct. Well worth not hung to wear contacts/glasses or prescription sunglasses in my opinion.

[WarrenVrs]

I’m 48 and my eyesight isn’t great. Had a recent eye test and they are healthy but optician has advised I probably should be wearing glasses all of the time. Last 3 or 4 years I’ve only needed for driving and tv.

A couple of friends have had eye surgery and said it’s worked perfectly for them. I looked at it a couple of years ago and never followed it up. Any tz thoughts?

What's your occupation? Has your prescription worsened?

Even if it goes 100% perfectly, you'll still need spectacle correction for office work, reading menus, phone use etc.

As David said, mid twenties with a stable prescription is ideal.

[Ironmonk3y]

Here's my take and it's my line of work.
Best time is about age 25. Algorithms for myopic corrections are good and usually work out well. At this age you stand a good chance of having a decent period of spectacle free time. I'd say about 10-15 years.
The problem tends to be that a spare £5k at age 25 is a bit hard to come by so people wait.
However waiting is a problem as reading glasses loom in your early 40s. Those who are myopic know they read very happily without their correction and optically this won't change (usually). But if you remove your myopic correction artificially and are over 40 you will go, in sit down, get toasted, stand, marvel at your new found distance vision, pick your phone up and promptly go back to the opticians and buy some reading glasses.
Now if you're the typical TZer, loads of money and no issue with that work lark, its great. You can pilot your zonda and gulfstream just fine. Occasionally you may need to have a little help to see the bill at the Ivy. But back at your desk in the real world you rapidly realise you will have your glasses on almost as much as you did before so you can see the screen/paperwork etc

Ok so I'm being a little sarcastic but you get the picture. If you're a office based person over 40 you need to really decide if its worth it. It won't save you money. If you do a lot of outside work/recreation it may be worthy of careful consideration.

On top of that you have only had one refractive surface altered and the other, your lens, is going to change as you age and will change your prescription so your spectacle free period may be more short lived. Also if you have had refractive surgery cataract surgery can be clinically more difficult to achieve a good outcome.

On top of that sadly not all procedures work as they should. Not many but there are no guarantees.

Yes there are multifocal procedures, implants, monovision etc but that adds more complication to the above.
It is without doubt where it's going but IMHO its not there yet. I wouldn't consider it at the moment but it's where technology is going.

Isn't lens replacement the latest thing? Although it's not possible to get perfect vision i.e. you'll be slightly short sighted or slightly long sighted.

[Devonian]

Thanks for all the responses, certainly some food for thought.

[solwisesteve]

I've needed reading glasses for the last 8-9 years (now 57)... the strength I needed went up quite quickly for the first5 years but seems to have plateaued out now. Following the thread on multi-focal contacts I think that's they way I'll be going. Reading glasses are okay when sat at the desk in front of the computer but when out and about I'm finding it inconvenient. The contacts seem a good alternative. Okay it's not perfect... reading distance is a little blurred but it's okay. Distance is much the same... you have to accept the compromise (and, btw, night driving on unlit roads is a non-no, btdt!). I spoke to someone that had gone for full lens replacement but this is c. 7K (WHAT?!) and is still a compromise close up vis-à-vis distance.

[DMC102]

Here's my take and it's my line of work.
Best time is about age 25. Algorithms for myopic corrections are good and usually work out well. At this age you stand a good chance of having a decent period of spectacle free time. I'd say about 10-15 years.
The problem tends to be that a spare £5k at age 25 is a bit hard to come by so people wait.
However waiting is a problem as reading glasses loom in your early 40s. Those who are myopic know they read very happily without their correction and optically this won't change (usually). But if you remove your myopic correction artificially and are over 40 you will go, in sit down, get toasted, stand, marvel at your new found distance vision, pick your phone up and promptly go back to the opticians and buy some reading glasses.
Now if you're the typical TZer, loads of money and no issue with that work lark, its great. You can pilot your zonda and gulfstream just fine. Occasionally you may need to have a little help to see the bill at the Ivy. But back at your desk in the real world you rapidly realise you will have your glasses on almost as much as you did before so you can see the screen/paperwork etc

Ok so I'm being a little sarcastic but you get the picture. If you're a office based person over 40 you need to really decide if its worth it. It won't save you money. If you do a lot of outside work/recreation it may be worthy of careful consideration.

On top of that you have only had one refractive surface altered and the other, your lens, is going to change as you age and will change your prescription so your spectacle free period may be more short lived. Also if you have had refractive surgery cataract surgery can be clinically more difficult to achieve a good outcome.

On top of that sadly not all procedures work as they should. Not many but there are no guarantees.

Yes there are multifocal procedures, implants, monovision etc but that adds more complication to the above.
It is without doubt where it's going but IMHO its not there yet. I wouldn't consider it at the moment but it's where technology is going.

This perfectly reflects the professional advice I received some years ago when I was considering LASIK / Wavefront.

Nonetheless, seduced by the prospect of getting 6/6 or better distance vision, I went to one of the well-known providers, who assessed me and said they could do it there and then.

In the hope of getting a better deal, I went to a competing provider, and their assessment revealed a chronic partial retinal detachment in one eye, of which I had been unaware, and which the first outfit had missed completely.

As a result, I was referred to a surgical retinal consultant, and remained on his list for two years. He decided the detachment was better left alone, but very strongly advised me against laser surgery (and riding rollercoasters).

So, if you're thinking about it, shop around!