I am 26 years old with healthy retinas but a 487/476 micron corneal thickness, 5.2/ 5.8 mm pupil size and a -9.00 prescription. I realize that this does not make me an ideal candidate for LASIK but I have gotten several different opinions on which surgery would be the best for me. Almost all surgeons recommended Wavefront (one doctor told me that with my prescription it may not make a difference). I have also had disagreement on the procedure with some saying I could do LASIK because Wavefront saves corneal tissue. Other doctors have recommended LASEK or PRK. Which would be the best for me? Also, research I have done indicated that PRK is best for mild/moderate myopia only. Is this a consideration as well? Thank you in advance for your help.

My correction was about -7.0 in both eyes and My cornea was a bit thicker then yours.

My doctor told me that although I could have PRK or Lasik, PRK was the more prudent choice. It would leave more cornea to work with if I needed an enhancement. Lucky thing too. I had to have an enhancement for hazing.

For me, PRK was the clear way to go. It's true you don't have that instant "WOW" type of correction and your are kinda sore for a few days. But I'm very happy with my results (20/15 and 20/30).

Whatever way you decide to go, be sure to discuss the possibility of hazing with your doctor. It's more likely to occur in folks with big corrections. Ask about Vitamin C and a drug called MMC to prevent hazing.

Take care....

Steve

Thanks Steve,

I was wondering, how long after the surgery did you have the correction? Was there a waiting period and did the haze appear immediately after surgery?

Also, how much discomfort did you experience with PRK? I have only known people that have had LASIK so I do not have much reference to what I may experience.

>Thanks Steve,

>I was wondering, how long after the
>surgery did you have the correction?
>Was there a waiting period and
>did the haze appear immediately after
>surgery?

>Also, how much discomfort did you experience
>with PRK? I have only known
>people that have had LASIK so
>I do not have much reference
>to what I may experience.

My original PRK was done on both eyes during April/2005. I had an excellent correction. It's difficult to say exactly when the hazing set in, but I noticed there was something wrong about four or five months later when I realised I couldn't see the tv from the couch anymore. After a couple months of steroid drops (which didn't have any effect at all), I had my right eye redone in November/2005 and my left eye redone in January/2006. My right eye now has a better correction then after the original surgery. My left eye is slightly worse then the original. Overall, though, I'm very pleased with the results. It was just an incredibly stressful and frustrating several months. The hazing was worse then being nearsighted. It was like looking at the world through a dirty window. An old pair of glasses helped, but there was a time when I could no longer drive safely in the evenings. Very scary.

PRK was not to terribly painful, although it's different for everybody. I was given drops with a mild pain killer in them which was very helpful. A sleep aid is helpful because the more you sleep during the first couple of days, the better. For me the worst was over within the first couple of days. I'd suggest taking at least a week off of work though. For some reason, my enhancement wasn't painful at all.

The big thing with PRK is patience. A month after the surgery, my vision (although dramatically improved) still wasn't that great and I went to my doctor in a panic. He perscribed me a new set of glasses to help. By the time the glasses arrived about two weeks later, there was such a dramatic improvement that I never ended up wearing them. Don't even begin to judge your result for about five to six weeks.

Do a search on this board on the keyword "MMC" and look for my name. You'll read more about my saga with haze. If I had the first surgery to do over again, I'd take Vitamin C (thought to prevent hazing) and I'd ask the doctor to put MMC in my eyes. Traditionally, MMC is only used during enhancements after haze develops to stop it from coming back. It would have been nice to have just stopped it in the first place since I was at high risk with my strong perscription. Just something to think about....

Take care....

Steve

being -9 and with 480 micron corneas, you wont have enough for lasik. The intralase flap would take 120 microns then 12 microns per diopter. You would have about 250 microns left and be looking at increased risk of ectasia and no possible enhancement and may still need thinner glasses. PRK will save some cornea, possiblly enough for an enhancement but you risk severe haze with your pescription. Phakic IOLs are your safest bet. Discuss this with your doctor for I am not one myself.

If you are half happy with glasses/contacts, this is a safe option to deal with, even if a little inconvinent.