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<p>I preferred to spend $200 on a prescription-corrected face mask. Perfect vision underwater without the risks of surgery …</p>
<p>^^I probably would make the same decision as you would! However, I think you can understand that there are other benefits to the surgery for some people. That was just one example. </p>
<p>The surgery isn’t for everyone, even if they are a good candidate. Too many people don’t go to reputable surgeons and are too anxious to get a deal. If you’re only paying a few hundred dollars per eye, it should be obvious that you haven’t chosen the right surgeon. Same thing with the doctors who immediately tell you that you’re a good candidate, simply by reading your file. This isn’t wise when it comes to your eyesight. One of the links earlier spoke of someone doing it on a whim because they thought it would be cool. Great idea! </p>
<p>No surgery is without some element of risk. My mother had cataract surgery on both eyes recently. There were definite risks involved but after much research, she weighed those risks against the likely results and decided to go ahead with the surgery. This is the process that all patients should be following, for any type of surgery.</p>
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<p>I wouldn’t necessarily equate expensive with high quality nor cheap with poor quality. The most important factor when it comes to choosing a surgeon for any procedure is their skill level and the number #1 factor in obtaining skills is the * quantity* of procedures they do. A surgeon who does 100 eye surgeries per year might not be as skilled as one who does 300 a year. Therefore, a surgeon who charges less and does three times the number of procedures than the high-price surgeon might indeed be the better surgeon.</p>
<p>Having said that, someone is rushing through the evaluation and surgery just to get to the next one isn’t necessarily going to be taking his time and could be doing a poor quality job during the surgery.</p>
<p>My point is don’t use price as an indicator of quality, just use it as one of many quality indicators.</p>
<p>After working in health care for years, I have learned that popularity has nothing to do with physician quality nor does price. The best thing to do is ask patients who have been through the surgery with that surgeon, ask them if they had side effects and if they did, how the office handled it. Ask another physician you respect. Ask the surgeon how many times a year he performs this particular surgery. Check and see if this surgeon has had any complaints filed against him with the state medical board. Is he an ophthalmologist or an optometrist? Are they board-certified? How many years has he or she been doing Lasik? How do they handle patients when they do have side effects (and if they tell you it never happens, run for the hills, they’re lying).</p>
<p>I do think it’s really important to weigh the risks (understanding that often times they don’t know the long-term risks of many procedures and medications for decades) vs the benefits. Particularly when it comes to elective procedures. Very few people need Lasik to be able to function, so it is fully an elective procedure. For some people, the risk of jeopardizing their eyesight (be it ever so slight) weighs more heavily than the convenience of not having to wear contacts or glasses. For others, they don’t worry so much about that risk and it’s worth it to them. It’s important to understand your own tolerance for risk in regard to this particular procedure. I’m very cautious about my eyesight, it’s the one thing I don’t want diminished. So every time I consider this procedure and I google ‘side effects of Lasik’ I end deciding the risks aren’t worth it to me.</p>
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<p>I didn’t say that it should be the sole indicator. I think it’s obvious that an informed patient wouldn’t do that and would research their options, and potential surgeons, thoroughly. A surgeon friend here in Toronto was one of the first to perform Lasik. Almost everyone we know who has had the surgery has had it performed by him. He’s probably performed more Lasik procedures than any other surgeon in North America. He’s also probably one of the most expensive. For years, a large part of his practice was Americans who were unable to have it done in their state. </p>
<p>In the intervening years, it sometimes seems as though every corner has an eye doctor who is suddenly an expert on laser surgery and is willing to perform that surgery for a couple of hundred dollars per eye. Those are the outfits to which I was referring. Anyone who is interested in the procedure and who would allow it to be done by such a doctor is very foolish.</p>