Laser eye surgery recommendations?

I just had mine done in December at the Australian Institute of Eye Surgery (http://aies.com.au/) in Sydney and was extremely happy with the whole thing. The cost was $1250 per eye (the website quotes double that but that’s out of date, trust me) and even though it’s in Sydney there is a decent hotel 2 mins away that’s reasonably priced.

I had it done with my wife at the same time and the only regrets we have is that we hadn’t had the procedure done earlier, worth every cent.

Not good, Artie.

With Dr. Rick @ vista, I had follow-ups for over a year afterwards, though with the Optos, not Rick. I had follow-up surgery (with Rick again) as the result wasn’t perfect – I don’t know what my vision was, but I could drive and use the computer, but it was annoying. I think I went in 3 or 4 times between the first and second procedures, then at least 3 more after the second.

I don’t regret the money I spent, but I am now kicking myself that I could have gotten a better deal. 🙂

I had mine done at Canberra Eye Hospital for $6200. I was a little disappointed by the result.

On the day of the surgery, I Had to wait 1+ hours after my scheduled appointment time (apparently wasn’t uncommon for this particular doctor) and then felt like I was in a production queue. The doctor was absolutely brutal getting my eye lined up for the first bit (cutting the flap) which ended up in some swelling before the procedure. When it came to the second bit (laser) I was meant to focus on a little red light. However, as soon as the laser starts, you can no longer see the red light. He got agitated and started raising his voice but when I told him that I couldn’t see the light when the laser started, he said, yeah he knows, but try to focus on it anyway!! The whole thing felt rushed and the doctor had a completely different demeanour to the one he displayed at the initial consult.

Afterwards, I wasn’t sure that I had 20/20 vision. I went to an optometrist who told me that my vision was 30/20 (or 20/30, whichever is worse?) and that was significant debris under the flap. Even now, I can see what looks to be a little hair in my vision when looking at a white screen or paper. So I went back to the doctor, and he said that my eyesight was close enough, and it wasn’t worth our time to do further correction.

To be honest, I was relieved, because I didn’t want to go through the procedure again. He also insisted there wasn’t any debris under my eye.

I was also surprised that for $6000 you only get one follow up consultation a week later (I think some places do another follow up 6 months later).

Two other people from my work went to the same doctor (not sure how many doctors they have at the CEH, but it wasn’t Dunlop). They were very happy with the result, however, so go figure…

Hi guys,

Thank you all for your comments.

I too have heard good things about both providers, so it’s hard to justify paying an extra $1500 at Canberra Eye Hospital vs. Vista

Sydney could be a possibility, but I can’t be bothered with the travel and accommodation hassles.

I’m having a consultation with my regular optometrist next week, so I’ll get her take on it and report back.

Cheers

Lilli said :

At the time, I paid a total of $988 per eye plus an aftercare pack (I think it was around $30) as well as accommodation costs of approx. $700 (I stayed at the Sebel in Manly – they do advise it is important to stay near by in case of complications).

wow.

it cost me nearly 6K in toto

I didn’t even question it, I just assumed that was the going rate.

My eyesight is pretty bad, -8 on both eyes, but apparently my cornea is thick enough to make me a good candidate for surgery. I had a consultation at Vista Eyes last year and have been trying to book a consultation at the Eye Hospital.

Overall I feel really good about Vista Eyes, but from what I can tell Dr Wolfe spends most of his time in Melbourne, and all of the Canberra staff are optometrists so I’m nervous about what would happen if I got an post-op infection.

The quote from Vista Eyes was about $5000 all up, I think that the Canberra Eye Hospital charges about $6500. Hope that’s helpful… Good luck 🙂

Lilli Be careful not to fall on your face, my mother did and the lense was pushed back, but the specialist thought that it was something else, so they operated on her eyes and completly stuffed her eye up, and admited after that it was from the fall, pity they didn’t realise that in the first place, also I’ve heard if you have had the cornia replaced you will need laser a few years later.

Glasses are terrible. It’s like being in a wheelchair.

That was a joke right? Either that or you need to get a healthy dose of reality and spend at least a week in a wheelchair (with use of your arms) or a weekend in a motorised one with your arms gaff-taped to the armrests.

I defy you to find a wheelchair user who wouldn’t swap you for strong prescription glasses.

Dazzlar said :

Isn’t Sydney a cheaper option even with accommodation costs added in?

True – I paid just under $2k to get my eyes done in Sydney (that was back in 2007).

Personally i’ve been waiting for the technology to mature for the past 10 years and im still not completely comfortable with the rate of people who revert back after 5 or so years after having the treatment. I’m hoping by closer to 2015 the technology will have improved further again before I am personally willing to risk it for the cost.

I underwent the Advanced Surface Laser (ASL) procedure in August 2008 at Sebban Eye Centre in Brookvale, Sydney – http://www.eye.net.au

At the time, I paid a total of $988 per eye plus an aftercare pack (I think it was around $30) as well as accommodation costs of approx. $700 (I stayed at the Sebel in Manly – they do advise it is important to stay near by in case of complications). It is really important to research different procedures as they can result in different healing times etc. The ASL procedure is different to common LASIK/LASEK (which involves the cutting of a flap of cornea, correcting underneath and then replacing the flap) in that there is no flap created. The surface of the eye is removed (you don’t actually feel this), the correction is performed, and then a hard contact lens is inserted in the eye until the cornea re-grows (usually 48-72hrs). I’ve been told the lack of flap in this surgery can be an advantage as there is no risk of ‘bubbles’ under the flap during healing.

There is some pain involved in this procedure and you are provided a script for some pretty heavy painkillers and lots of eye drops. I believe I ended up staying in Sydney for 4 nights as one of my corneas took a little longer to fully stitch together. The painkillers are needed, as well as a sympathetic carer (to administer eye drops, pain relief, hugs etc.)

I would highly recommend Dr Sebban and his team. My brother has also had the same procedure and both of us are really happy with the results. If you have any further questions I am happy to answer 🙂

Joe Canberran said :

And HOT! don’t forget glasses can make you look dead sexy!

Glasses are terrible. It’s like being in a wheelchair.

And HOT! don’t forget glasses can make you look dead sexy!

Why???? glasses make you look smarter according to research done by Melbourne Uni.

http://www.infoniac.com/science/people-wearing-glasses-more-intelligent.html

For the people who have had it done : What was the overall cost in the end? (If it isn’t too personal a question)

Iain Dunlop at Canberra Eye Hospital. Does a great job.

THE GOGGLES! THEY DO NOTHING!!1!

Isn’t Sydney a cheaper option even with accommodation costs added in?

Glad you put up this post as I am also interested in recommendations of good places. I have been considering having laser eye surgery for quite some time now. Am just a bit scared about the risks as it is my eyesight I’m dealing with. I look forward to reading other comments. I have heard good things about the Canberra Eye Hospital though.

I had my eyes done in 2005 by Ian Dunlop and havent looked back. Mind you, I did my homework first, weighed up the risks vs benefits etc. I got a independant opinion from an optometrist as well, who said to me I was ‘the perfect candidate’ etc. Turns out he was correct. Life changing event to someone who had -6.75 to better than 20/20 vision. I first looked into it early on in the piece in 1997, and waited until 2005 until I was confident the technology had improved, and the surgeon had more practice (which is a big thing).

I was a bit stressed waiting for it to be done, however by the time the first eye had been done I found the process quite interesting and wasnt phased at all.
I walked out of there wondering why I was stressed out at all. (think about this phrase a bit if you get worried or stressed).

I didnt go to work for 5 days afterward, stayed indoors, did all the things they told me to do and thensome.

Its a personal choice, though for me it was a great one.

Good luck with your homework and eventual decision.

Cheers

I had mine done at Vista 2 and a half years ago.

Dr Rick Wolfe was a nice bloke, but I thought it would have been better to have more consultation time with him, rather than the optomotrists. With the name and the image he looks like he belongs on daytime soaps, but he really did make me comfortable.

The surgery and post surgery support was faultless. I did have to go in for a second go, but that is not unusual for where I started from.

I have no regrets with the procedure or choosing Rick.

A coworker got it done at the Canberra Eye Hospital mid last year, no problems that I’ve heard.