I have Haemophilia A, which means i have a tougher time with my blood clotting. I want to perform LASIK or CustomeVUE. My eye surgeon said that the pressur from the suction ring may cause some bleeding in the eye, but he will stop if he detects excessive bleeding. My vision is -2.50 on both eyes.

Should I go ahead?
What are my risks?

Excuse me for insulting your potential doctor, but there is no way that the doctor would know if the microkeratome ring that is applied to the eye with suction is bursting the blood vessels underneath. No way! I cannot overstress this point.

Once the blade starts the process of creating the Lasik flap, it is imperative that the blade completes the pass. Even if the doctor could somehow know that the microkeratome was causing damage it would be downright dangerous to your vision to stop in the middle of flap creation. And even if the doctor did stop in the middle of flap creation, the microkeratome must move back in the starting neutral position before the suction could be safely released.

If you are highly motivated to have refractive surgery and you do not have neovascularization of the cornea (blood vessels encroaching into the clear front of the eye) then you may (emphasis on “may”) be an appropriate candidate for either PRK or its cousin LASEK. These techniques do not use a microkeratome and would not be likely to damage your blood vessels.

I very highly recommend you get another opinion from a different refractive surgeon at a different facility and get an opinion from your hemophilia specialist before having any elective surgery.

Glenn Hagele
http://USAEyes.org
Lasik Patient Advocacy & Surgeon Certification

I am not a doctor.

Hi Glenn,

The doctor is recommending Intralase, such that he suction pressure is less compared to that of Blade, in the creation of the flap.

I also understand that the usage of contact lens is a contributor to having more capilaries in the eye, and thus increasing the risk of having a bloody eye after surgery.

Now I've never worn contact lens, so does that mean that I have less risk bleeding? Again, I want to avoid this bleeding since my clotting is a problem.

Should I prepare myself by having factor VII (clotting factor) standby for surgery, in the event that the bleeding is severe?

PRK and LASEK seems like old technology to me..