Without a doubt, LASIK has dramatically changed how patients see the world more clearly. No longer are individuals with refractive errors solely confined to glasses or contact lenses. Instead, LASIK and other laser eye procedures enable people who would often need corrective eyeglasses to see perfectly without any assistance. LASIK can correct nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia), astigmatism, and to some extent, the need for reading glasses (presbyopia).
However, the idea of being treated with a laser might be unsettling for many individuals contemplating LASIK. ClearSight’s highly qualified medical team is committed to ensuring your time with us is relaxing, fun, and, most importantly, completely life-changing. We will make sure all your LASIK questions are answered and that you feel confident in your decision to undergo laser vision correction. Knowing what to anticipate helps make patients feel more at ease and confident about the procedure. How long the LASIK procedure takes is one of the most frequently asked questions we get.
How long does LASIK laser vision correction take from start to finish?
The actual LASIK procedure (LASER-assisted in situ keratomileusis) is surprisingly very quick. Your LASIK laser vision correction procedure will likely take less than 10 minutes per eye, with the actual laser correction only taking place for 20–120 seconds of that total time. This information is tremendously comforting for many patients who are worried or apprehensive about the possibility of laser vision correction. More goes into a successful LASIK procedure than just the actual laser treatment, so let’s cover what happens before, during, and after.
What happens before my LASIK procedure?
Preparation for your LASIK procedure starts at your initial, free consultation. During this thorough yet gentle eye exam, ClearSight’s experienced staff will perform an ocular analysis that will give the eye doctor important information about your eyes. Your initial exam will use our cutting-edge diagnostic equipment, and we’ll be able to tell you precisely if LASIK or another vision correction procedure is ideal for your eyes.
One of our doctors will perform a physical eye exam followed by a thorough medical history of your eyes and eye health. The eye doctor will then review the examination findings, note if you are a suitable candidate for LASIK vision correction, and recommend courses of action for improved vision.
Your ClearSight patient care coordinator will go over the specifics and cost of your custom LASIK procedure when your evaluation is complete. We take patient education seriously, and our ultimate objective is to provide you with all the knowledge you need to make a decision confidently. If you are a candidate for LASIK, you don’t have to arrange your LASIK procedure immediately and can schedule it whenever you are ready.
What happens on the day of my LASIK procedure?
On the day of your LASIK procedure, you will be in ClearSight’s Oklahoma City office for about two hours. Even though the actual LASIK treatment only takes a few minutes, the rest of your time will be spent completing patient forms, preparing for the procedure, and recovering afterward.
Preparing for the procedure
All LASIK patients have a somewhat unique corneal curvature. As a result, each person’s cornea’s natural shape will need to be reshaped. Your LASIK surgeon will perform corneal topography (essentially a photograph for the front of the eye) to precisely and accurately understand how your cornea is shaped. This non-invasive medical imaging method is used to map the cornea’s surface curvature. Your LASIK laser eye surgeon will use this topography to precisely note where your eyes need to be laser-treated to lessen and eventually eradicate the refractive issues that keep you dependent on prescription glasses or contact lenses.
The LASIK treatment
Once the doctor is ready to begin your LASIK procedure, you will be given eye drops to numb your eyes so that you won’t feel anything when the laser treatment starts. This numbing effect will take around 10 seconds to set in. Your eyes will then be covered with a device to help keep them open during the procedure.
Next, the LASIK treatment is performed by your eye surgeon using an excimer laser and a femtosecond laser. The femtosecond laser created a thin flap in order to access the deeper cornea tissue for treatment. To accomplish the necessary reshaping needed in the strategy revealed in your corneal topography, a second laser is used to then flatten or steepen this cornea tissue. You will be required to stare at a target within the laser throughout this time. It takes around two minutes to complete this step. The corneal flap is then repositioned over the eye and allowed to heal when the laser therapy is finished.
After the procedure
Your eyes will be examined right after your procedure, and you’ll get detailed instructions on how to take care of them while they’re recuperating. Once you have received your prescription eye drops and your eye surgeon feels you are recovering well, you will be sent on your way.
You will need someone to drive you home since you may experience blurred vision immediately after your procedure. We advise you to return home and rest for a few hours. Although initial healing starts right away, be sure to allow your eyes enough time to rest during the first several hours after your procedure.
Many patients see vision improvement immediately following their treatment and most will see even greater outcomes the next morning. The day after your LASIK treatment, you’ll have a follow-up visit with your surgeon to see how your vision is doing. Most LASIK patients can go back to work the following day.
Your surgeon will go over any limitations that are particular to your procedure and your specific way of life before your LASIK treatment.
The ClearSight LASIK difference
Since 1994, ClearSight has been devoted to helping the people of Oklahoma and beyond. From the start, we have made it our mission to provide everyone who enters our clinic with the clearest eyesight and freedom from having to wear contact lenses or glasses. Our team of board-certified surgeons and highly qualified medical staff with decades of combined experience are committed to making sure your LASIK experience with us is transformative, as an aside, all of our eye doctors and surgeons have had LASIK or a similar eye procedure themselves, and are so excited about how clear their own vision is!
When it comes to your results, we take them seriously. Because we are confident in the effectiveness of our work, if you don’t have 20/20 vision or greater, we will refund the entire cost of your procedure. Call our office today to request an appointment to begin your LASIK process with a free consultation.
