Lasik Surgery

What types of conditions will benefit from Lasik Surgery?

Lasik Surgery is used to treat people who are short sighted, long sighted or who have astigmatism. A patient’s suitability for Lasik depends upon their corneal thickness, shape and other eye conditions.

What does the procedure involve?

The laser procedure is quick and easy. The laser is used to create a thin flap on the front surface of the eye (cornea). This flap is gently lifted back to expose the underlying cornea. The underlying cornea is then sculpted dependent on the patient’s individual refractive error. The corneal flap is then repositioned and heals naturally without the use of stitches. Local anaesthesia in the form of eye drops is used during the procedure, as well as a mild oral sedative if the patient so wishes. Laser treatments are carried out in our licensed, accredited day surgery centre which maintains full operating theatre standards.

What equipment is used?

We use the most advanced technology for bladeless LASIK treatment.

We use the Zeiss VISUMAX Femtosecond laser coupled with Schwind Amaris 750S EXCIMER Laser.

This high tech equipment ensures fast healing and exceptional accuracy for our patients.

Is it covered by Medicare?

Many refractive surgery procedures are not covered under health insurance and Medicare.

Some health funds may provide some benefit. You should enquire from your health fund. Our staff can provide details of this at your consultation. You may be eligible for a tax rebate of 20% on any medical expenses over $1500 incurred in one year. Please discuss this further with your tax accountant. The cost of all surgical procedures will be discussed with our administrative staff on the day of your consultation. Our specialised clinical staff is available to answer any further questions regarding laser treatment.

What are the risks?

As with any surgical procedure there are risks to consider before having surgery. Technology and surgical techniques have reduced these risks to a very low level however, these need to be considered.

1. Lasik Flap Complications
   The LASIK procedure involves cutting a thin flap on the surface of the cornea using a Femtosecond Laser. A second laser (Excimer Laser) then reshapes the cornea beneath the flap. The flap is then repositioned. Rarely an imperfect or incomplete flap can result and additional procedures may be required to fix this. If the flap is misaligned or if debris is trapped beneath it, the flap is repositioned and any debris cleaned away.
2. Over or under correction
   In adjusting the focus of the eye over or under correction or natural regression can occur. In this case an enhancement procedure may be suggested to improve the result.
3. Infection
   Infection of the eye following refractive surgery is rare but if it occurs prompt treatment is necessary. We suggest that the patient is available for follow up for at least one week after surgery.
4. Other
   Very rarely corneal melting and corneal ectasia can occur.

What are the benefits

The visual recovery is remarkably quick. Most patients will begin to see clearly 2 hours after the procedure with good vision being achieved the following day.