I just had my two-week post op examination and have some problems. Though my corneas look good, my flaps are healing well, and swelling is not a problem, I still have numerous “little wrinkles” in my left eye. I already had my flap lifted and repositioned once (the day after my initial surgery) and was told that an additional lift procedure to remove the remaining straie would pose complications. These straie ARE definitely in my line of vision and are causing lots of blurriness and excessive starbursting in that eye at night (I also have lots of “haloing” and glare at night in both eyes, but doctor said that would subside in time).

My surgeon suggested we wait another month before deciding what to do. If at that appointment we see no improvement in the wrinkles (which is likely since no improvement has been shown yet) I can either opt to "live with it" or gamble with another lift. Since my night vision is such a mess, I would REALLY like to get these wrinkles taken care of. However, I am not confident I wouldn’t end up worse off than I am now. [I could be getting the jargon wrong here, but apparently, before the procedure my left eye was -6.00 with 1.75 astigmatism. My right eye was -6.75 with 1.50 astigmatism. My pupil size is 5mm in bright light, 7mm in dim. A “Nidek” laser was used, with a 7.5mm center of albation. After lasik, my right eye is "plano, no astigmatism” and left eye is “-.25, with .75 astigmatism.”].

My first question is, do the risks associated with another lift outweigh the benefits of the possibility of removing the straie? If I do decide to have another lift, is waiting another month a good idea, or should I get it done right away? Also, how do I go about getting a second opinion on my situation (my surgeon does not seem to be very experienced with wrinkles – at my last appointment he said he would have do some research on methods of wrinkle removal)? Finally, can you recommend any surgeons experienced in wrinkle removal in Southeastern Wisconsin?

Any advice would be MOST appreciated!!!

If vision is decreased in an eye due to flap wrinkles, then in general the benefits of performing a procedure to remove the wrinkles far outweighs the risks of problems/complications. Although there are risks such as infection, epithelial ingrowth, etc, the chance that the wrinkles will be removed is generally worth it.
There are a number of methods to remove flap wrinkles - and it is so your benefit to find an experienced surgeon. Please feel free to email me (you can just email the AskLasikDocs.com) with more specefics as to where you live, and I will be happy to help you find a doctor for a second opinion.

Bill Trattler, MD
Miami, FL