[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Lambu, I had severe myopia most of my life.
Left eye -4.5
Right eye -5 with cylindrical error.

I was scared to get my eyes operated. I thought about it for 10 years. Made 6 visits to the lasik surgery centre 3 years ago. Understood the details, every small detail and if there were any risks.

Finally took the plunge with a little bit of courage and encouragement from a friend. I have never looked back since. It has been 3 years. No complications, no problems and no glasses.
I am a happy man. For the first year I went mad with sunglasses, buying everything I could buy, lol.

I went to Dr. Niteen Dedhia in Mumbai. You can search for him on the internet.

Good to know that things have worked out well for you, Sam, after you took the plunge. I too have myopia, and my power is more than yours---7.5(-) on the left eye and 4.5(-) on the right, with astigmatism too.
I underwent the corneal thickness test and was deemed to be suitable for operation.
But unlike you, I chickened out last momemt because some other opthalmic surgeon scared me. He said he couldn't give lasik a clean chit till there are facts for 10 years at a stretch. This was in 2003 and lasik was only 3 years old in India. He also said that there is no proof if a lasered eye could withstand cataracts operation when one is in the 60s.
I also read that most lasik operations lead to dry-eye syndrome for a few months. Being an IT professional, I was not sure how this would impact me.
Given these facts, I backed out. But now I am getting inspired once again after reading your post.Man, I envy you!

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

But unlike you, I chickened out last momemt because some other opthalmic surgeon scared me. He said he couldn't give lasik a clean chit till there are facts for 10 years at a stretch. This was in 2003 and lasik was only 3 years old in India. He also said that there is no proof if a lasered eye could withstand cataracts operation when one is in the 60s.
I also read that most lasik operations lead to dry-eye syndrome for a few months. Being an IT professional, I was not sure how this would impact me.
Given these facts, I backed out. But now I am getting inspired once again after reading your post.Man, I envy you!

Believe me, my organs had shrunk with fear. lol. It is not easy to get on a table and have somebody work on your most delicate and necessary organs, both eyes together!

I even considered doing one eye at a time, so if it went wrong, I;d still be the one-eyed Yeti, lol.

No, I did both eyes together. The doctor and his outfit was confidence inspiring.

I went for final tests and prep on thursday. Friday was the procedure.
Saturday and Sunday I slet at home with my eyes shut mostly.

Monday I was at work with 2 different eye drops in my pocket.
The next monday I had only the eye-lubricant. Think of it as a bottle full of tears.
The Monday after that I was just putting it once or twice a day in my eyes.

The monday after that it was as if it had never happened. That was 3 years ago. I have not put any drops or any medication in my eyes since. And my vision is crystal clear. I am a very happy subject and would recommend lasik anytime.

[MC Mayank]

How much does lasik cost?

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by MC Mayank

How much does lasik cost?

At that time, 3 years ago I paid a little under Rs. 40K for both eyes.

[hkanitkar]

Nice topic going on here, I say.
I have been wearing lenses since i was in 7th. Thats almost 12 yrs now. Firstly, my ophthalmologist prescribed me the semi-soft lenses and a good 5 years later, he shifted me towards Soft lenses. My power : -9.0 in right and -7.75 in left.

3 years back, I was suggested a Corneal scan - to check if I can undergo Lasik : got this one done at Dr. Kumar Doctor in mumbai ( one of the pioneers in Lasik I'm told ).
I was told that my right eye with less thickness of cornea will have a residual no. of about -1.0 to 1.5 and this put me off completely, as i am really comfortable with the contact lenses right now.

Reading about the Lasik here, has gotten me interested again.

@Sam, anyone undergone Lasik - can you provide me with links on the web about lasik ( if any ) ?? I have googled some bits, but I would like to know more about it.

[MC Mayank]

Originally Posted by MC Mayank

I had my eyes checked at Manipal by a decent doctor and his opthalmologist.. I guess I can't do better in terms of prescription. But remember, if my prescription was wrong, then my lenses would also given me a blurred vision.
On tilting the frames, the image becomes sharper without reducing in size. So I have a strong feeling that it's something the optician is missing while making my glasses.



My prescription reads as follows:
Right eye: Sphere, 1.25; cyl 0.25; axis 30
Left eye: Sphere, 1.5; cyl N/A; axis N/A
*all distance numbers

Well I started wearing glasses in 2004 and I noticed this problem only maybe 2 yrs back or so..never checked before that. The 'queer' thing is that since my power has changed maybe like 4 times altogether.. everytime I got a frame made this problem existed, and I have used about 4 opticians, the latest being Lawrence and Mayo in Bangalore.

Went for my eye check up to a couple of eye hospitals. The icare in Noida and the Sankara Eye Hospital thats opened up newly near my house here in whitefield. My new power is now
Right eye: Sphere, 1.75; cyl 0.25;
Left eye: Sphere, 2; cyl N/A;

This in just 4 months since my last checkup at Manipal in April. Even with the prescription that Manipal gave, I wasn't completely satisfied. Could it be that the power can increase by 0.5 within 4 months?

[aaggoswami]

Since 2003, I am wearing specs. The present configuration is -2 for right and -2.5 for left eye. Both eyes have cylindrical axis problem.

The problem is that I cant go for smaller frames and moreover the best vision is the one I get from the middle of the lens ( in frame ). This creates trouble specially when driving two wheeler. If I want to have a glance at tachometer, its not very clear.

My questions are:
1)
When ever I remove my specs, the objects are a bit larger and nearner. After I wear specs, the objects are sharper and away and a bit smaller. So when the eye number changes, I almost manage to die driving a two wheeler because I am not able to get a perfect vision of the road and obstacles.
Can this be solved ?
If yes, how ?
Is it that I am given a slightly higher number lens ?

2)
Are contact lenses difficult to wear ? Suppose they get struck in the eye, then what ?

3)
I am not able to understand what is lasik. I am actually mostly in front of PC ( 19" LCD, view sonic ), so does this damage the eye and increase the number ?

4)
My doctor has advised me to wear specs always and only take off at night while going to sleep. But I am able to find out that when I am doing very near reading, without specs I am better. Not able to understand this phenomenon.

[vivekiny2k]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

4)
My doctor has advised me to wear specs always and only take off at night while going to sleep. But I am able to find out that when I am doing very near reading, without specs I am better. Not able to understand this phenomenon.

I don't know why doctors do that. it only aggravates the problem. unless you have trouble reading without the glasses, i don't see a reason why you should use them. reading with -ve powered glasses, you are making your eyes further short sighted.

here is a useful link
Myopia Prevention Home Page

af I found this. I often use this technique to read text on TV when my glasses are not around. make a small hole with my fingers and see thru it.

Pinhole glasses - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

ok, now looks like I have too much time in my hands

Amazon.com: Relearning to See: Improve Your Eyesight -- Naturally!: Thomas R. Quackenbush: Books

[vivekiny2k]

I found this site which has good material and ebooks on natural vision improvement. the books are on public domain since they were written long back. William Bate's book is supposed to be the bible of the subject.

Imagination Blindness - A Site Dedicated to the Bates Method of Natural Vision Improvement

[aaggoswami]

Thanks vivekiny2K!
I am now visiting a new doctor and I want to get rid of specs. Will be making very serious efforts.

The link is quite useful.

[vivekiny2k]

just don't keep your hopes too high. there are critics and believers. and although i agree to and have experienced many of his findings, I don't believe he can resolve the variety of health problems with his techniques that he claims.

at some points i felt i was reading a literature for swami Ramdev, claiming to cure everything.