Ready For Healthy Eyes

2006-07-19T22:46:00.000-07:00

Where's the Best Place to Buy Contact Lenses?

From an eye doctor? Over the Internet? Optical store? Warehouse club? Wherever you buy, shop for value and don't forget your eye health.

With so many choices, how can you find the best place to buy contact lenses?
Start with three important concepts when evaluating where to purchase:

1. Ignore your preconceived ideas about which source is cheaper. Evaluate a variety of sources, and don't automatically rule out any online or offline entity.
2. Buying anything on the Internet involves risk, and we'll tell you why this is especially true with contact lenses. That doesn't mean it's a bad idea — you just need to know which sites to buy from.
3. Whether buying online or offline, you should focus on value, not just price. Overall value is affected by these factors (in no particular order) :
- Availability
- Price
- Insurance
- Convenience
- Bundled products and professional services

How to Shop for Contact Lenses

With any type of purchase, most people who are "looking for the best price" are really looking for the best overall value. In contact lenses, where a combination of products and professional services are involved, this is especially true. Don't ignore the issues of convenience and availability; the best price won't mean much if the product is out of stock, and you need it now.

In addition, consider the value of your time. Since there are literally hundreds of contact lens sellers available to you, you could spend hours online comparison shopping, or driving somewhere to pick up lenses. Be certain to consider the time invested in relation to the savings.

Where's the Best Price?

To get the best price on contact lenses, you have to comparison shop. Don't assume you'll find a significantly better price on the Internet than you will in an optical chain or from an independent ECP; ask about prices during your eye exam or contact lens fitting.
Also, don't assume that any seller who offers one particular lens for less will be cheaper for all lenses.

One company may sell a standard spherical lens for less, but a second company might sell a specialty lens for less than the first company. A company that's cheaper for one brand might be more expensive for another one. Also, pricing can change often, particularly at Internet sites, where price changes can appear at any time.
Comparing prices can be complicated. Read on for more insights.

Comparing Online Prices for Contact Lenses

You can compare prices from mail-order contact lens sellers by using websites such as shopping.com, froogle.com (sister site of Google) and shopping.yahoo.com. Entering a brand name will pull up hundreds of linked listings, almost always with prices. The downside: It can be hard to locate a particular seller; all sellers may not be included; and although listings are updated frequently they may not reflect recent price changes, specials or availability.

When to Buy from Your Eye Doctor

Pricing of contact lenses from ECPs varies widely. Many people assume that lenses from a doctor will be more expensive, but this is not always the case. Some doctors will sell larger quantities of lenses — a year's supply, for example — at prices that are competitive with other sources.

Some eye care practitioners offer bundled packages of lenses and professional services. If your doctor's lens price is slightly higher than a competitive source, but the package includes office visits, contact lens care products, or other services, the value may be greater.
Then there's the issue of convenience. Today many eye care professionals offer web or e-mail lens reordering capability to their patients. And they'll mail your lenses to you, or have the lens manufacturer ship the lenses directly to you.

A Note About Insurance

If you have a health insurance plan that covers contact lenses, you need to contact your plan coordinator to identify your benefits. Do this before you make an appointment for a fitting.
Many health-care plans, such as Aetna/US Healthcare, have vision care programs that offer both eye exams and discounts on contact lenses. Usually, you must purchase the lenses at specific optical retail locations.

Some eyewear benefits plans simply offer discounts on certain replacement lenses. These programs don't include eye exams or contact lens fittings, which you will need in order to obtain a prescription.

Evaluating Mail-Order Retailers

Mail-order can be very convenient: it takes just a few clicks of your mouse, or a toll-free call. But there are literally hundreds of these sellers, and it's crucial to remember that they are not all created equal.

Mail-order contact lens sellers range from large, publicly traded companies like 1-800 Contacts and Wal-Mart to back-room operations with no full-time staff. Although smaller operators may publicize attractive prices on their websites, they may not offer the service and selection you're looking for. Some have little inventory, and may obtain lenses only after customers place orders.

Larger sellers can be in a better position to get your lenses to you quickly, because they stock a lot of lenses. For example, 1-800 Contacts — the largest mail-order seller since its acquisition of Lens Express — says that its inventory is more than 20 million lenses. Vision Direct, another large mail-order contact lens seller owned by Drugstore.com, boasts an inventory of over two million lenses.

Put any company you're thinking of ordering from to this test:

1. Will my order ship ASAP? Smaller, low-volume companies might stock only the most common prescriptions. If they have to obtain your lenses after you order them, delivery time may be longer than you expect. A mail-order seller must, by law, contact your eye care practitioner to verify your prescription. The law says your ECP's office has eight business hours to respond; this can delay the shipment of your lenses. (If your ECP does not respond within eight hours, the company may ship the order anyway.)

2. Do I trust this company with my credit card information? There's always some risk in buying from companies you have no experience with, and never heard of. Thoroughly research any company you are considering buying from with websites like the Better Business Bureau (bbbonline.com). Some shopping engines also provide ratings that reflect customers' satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) with various sellers, and allow you to read customer comments.

3. Is customer service readily available? If there's a problem with your order, it's nice to know that you can easily access a customer service representative to handle it.

4. Will the company be in business tomorrow? For example, if there's a billing error, such as an accidental double-billing of your credit card, you'll want to be confident in the integrity of the company, and a quick resolution.

5. What's the return policy? If you buy a large amount of lenses and your prescription changes, make sure the company will accept the unopened boxes for credit.

Brick-and-Mortar Contact Lens Sellers

Optical chains (like Pearle and LensCrafters) and optical departments (of retailers like Sears, Wal-Mart, Target, BJ's, and Costco) generally have optometrists either on-premises or in adjacent affiliated locations. Such outlets offer the advantage of being able to provide eye exams and contact lens fittings, as well as sell you a supply of lenses.

If you have a common prescription, already have a valid Rx and need more contact lenses immediately, such a location may be a good option because there's no waiting for your lenses. Some people also appreciate the "trust factor" of a personal transaction, as opposed to mail-order sellers that can be contacted only by phone or Internet.

Optical chains and large, multi-location eye care practices also benefit from volume buying, and generally offer competitive prices.

Brand-Switching and "Private Label" Contact Lenses

By law, contact lens retailers must sell you the exact lens you have been prescribed — no switching of brands or lens specifications. But there is one exception. Some CL manufacturers sell a particular lens under several brand names — for example, they may create private-label brands for large eye care practices or optical chains. If your prescription calls for a private-label lens, you can buy that same lens packaged with a different brand name. Some mail-order sellers offer guides to help determine the national brand name of a private-label lens.

The Bottom Line on Buying Contact Lenses

There's no one answer to the question, "Where should I buy contact lenses?" To get the most value from your purchase, you'll need to think about what best meets your needs, and do some comparison shopping.

No matter where you buy your lenses, be certain to have your eyes checked on a regular basis. With smart shopping and regular eye care, your contact lens-wearing experience can be both economical and healthful.

Healthy Eyes

2006-07-18T21:29:00.000-07:00

Which Eyeglass FramesWould Look Best on You?

For many of us, the most important aspect of choosing eyeglass frames is how they look on our face. You could try on every pair of eyeglasses in the store to find out how each one looks, but narrowing down your choices in advance can save you a lot of time and aggravation. To do so, you simply need to determine your face shape and coloring, and read about which eyeglass frame styles and colors would look best on you.

Matching Eyeglass Frames to Face Shapes
According to the Vision Council of America (VCA) Envision Yourself program, there are three keys to choosing the correct eyeglass frame for your face shape:
1. The frame shape should contrast with the face shape.
2. The frame size should be in scale with the face size.
3. Eyewear should repeat your personal best feature (such as a blue frame to match blue eyes).

Also, while most faces are a combination of shapes and angles, there are seven basic face shapes: round, oval, oblong, base-down triangle, base-up triangle, diamond and square. Here is a further description of these face shapes and which types of frames work for each (information comes from VCA). A good optician can help you use these guidelines to choose your new eyeglasses.

Round
A round face has curvilinear lines with the width and length in the same proportions and no angles. To make the face appear thinner and longer, try angular narrow eyeglass frames to lengthen the face, a clear bridge that widens the eyes and frames that are wider than they are deep, such as a rectangular shape.

Oval
The oval face is considered to be the ideal shape because of its balanced proportions. To keep the oval's natural balance, look for eyeglass frames that are as wide as (or wider than) the broadest part of the face, or walnut-shaped frames that are not too deep or too narrow.

Oblong
The oblong face is longer than it is wide and has a long straight cheek line and sometimes a longish nose. To make the face appear shorter and more balanced, try frames that have a top-to-bottom depth, decorative or contrasting temples that add width to the face or a low bridge to shorten the nose.

Base-Down Triangle
The triangular face has a narrow forehead that widens at the cheek and chin areas. To add width and emphasize the narrow upper third of the face, try frames that are heavily accented with color and detailing on the top half or cat-eye shapes.

Base-Up Triangle
This face has a very wide top third and small bottom third. To minimize the width of the top of the face, try frames that are wider at the bottom, very light colors and materials, and rimless frame styles (which have a light, airy effect because the lenses are simply held in place to the temples by a few screws).

Diamond
Diamond-shaped faces are narrow at the eye line and jawline, and cheekbones are often high and dramatic. This is the rarest face shape. To highlight the eyes and bring out the cheekbones, try frames that have detailing or distinctive brow lines, or try rimless frames or oval and cat-eye shapes.

Square
A square face has a strong jaw line and a broad forehead, plus the width and length are in the same proportions. To make the square face look longer and soften the angles, try narrow frame styles, frames that have more width than depth and narrow ovals.

Color Analysis
VCA's three keys to color analysis are that ...
1. all people have either a warm (yellow-based) or cool (blue-based) coloring.
2. everyone looks best in his or her own color base.
3. eyewear color should complement personal coloring.

The main factors to determine the best color palette are the colors of the skin, eyes and hair.

Skin
Skin tone is the prime element in determining coloring. All complexions fall into one of two color bases — blue (cool) or yellow (warm). A cool complexion has blue or pink undertones, and a warm complexion has a "peaches and cream" or yellow cast. Olive skin is considered cool because it is a mixture of blue and yellow. (In the United States, cool, blue-based complexions are more common than the yellow-based warm complexions. About 60 percent of the population are "cools.")

Eyes
Eye colors are usually a secondary element in determining coloring because of the wide range of eye colors. For example, blue eyes can range from a cool almost-violet to a pale blue-gray, which is warm. Brown eyes can vary from a light cider shade (warm) through a medium-brown to a cool almost-black.

Hair
Hair colors are also considered warm or cool. Strawberry blond, platinum, blue-black, white, salt-and-pepper and "dishwater" brown are cool. Warm hair colors include golden blond, flat black, brown-gold, "carrot" and "dirty" gray.

Eyeglass Frame Colors
Once you have determined if you are "warm" or "cool," then you can find the eyeglass frame colors that will suit you the best. Some examples of frame colors best for warm coloring are: camel, khaki, gold, copper, peach, orange, coral, off-white, fire-engine red, warm blue and blond tortoise. For cool coloring, the best eyeglass frame hues are black, rose-brown, blue-gray, plum, magenta, pink, jade, blue and demi-amber (darker) tortoise

Contact Lense

2006-07-18T21:06:00.000-07:00

Are Your Contact Lenses Uncomfortable?Here's What to Do About It

Ever feel like there's something not quite right with your contact lenses? You're not alone. Half of former wearers say they dropped out of contact lenses because of discomfort. But there's no reason to discontinue wear, or suffer in silence. There are many remedies for contact lens discomfort, including a host of new contact lenses and other products designed to create a more comfortable wearing experience.
Before we review your options, remember that contact lens discomfort takes many forms. The only way to determine the causes of your particular discomfort, and the appropriate remedies, is with an in-person exam by an eye care professional who is experienced in contact lenses. This will also rule out that the discomfort is signaling a more serious underlying problem.
Keep in mind:
If your eyes don't feel good, look good, or see well, you need a checkup.
Don’t be afraid to bring up problems with your doctor because you think it might mean the end of your contact lens wear. Problems can usually be fixed!
Sometimes a minor irritation, if left untreated, can develop into a more serious problem — occasionally one that can be sight-threatening.
The information below is great preparatory education for your doctor visit. Choose a statement that describes you, or go directly to discomfort remedies:

Situations

"My eyes are red, painful, swollen and/or produce discharge."If you experience any of these symptoms, stop lens wear immediately and consult your eye care professional. These could be signs of a serious problem. Contact lenses can't be comfortable if your eyes aren't healthy to begin with, and continued contact lens wear can exacerbate problems that are either lens-induced or unrelated to lens wear.

"When wearing contacts, I always feel like something is in my eye."Contact lenses are not one-size-fits-all, and constant "lens awareness" could indicate a poorly fitting lens. Lenses come in thousands of combinations of diameter and curvature. If your lenses have the wrong diameter or base curve, you'll likely feel that something is always in your eye. If the lenses are too large, your eyelids will tend to dislodge them when you blink. The wrong size lenses can even cause abrasion of your cornea. This is one reason why swapping contact lenses with friends is a bad idea.
Lens awareness can also result from lenses that have lipid or protein deposits on them. This occurs naturally from being exposed to your tears, but your lens cleaning products should be removing them. Your doctor might recommend a change in lens care regimen. It's also possible that a lens material or cleaning solution can be incompatible with your eyes or tears.

"I drink a lot of coffee and/or alcohol, and/or I smoke."If your diet includes a lot of caffeine or alcohol, or too little water, your eyes may be too dry for lens wear. Changing your diet can help, and your doctor may recommend a nutritional supplement to improve the quality of your tears. If you smoke, you are at increased risk for dry eye, as well as other problems such as macular degeneration.

"I'm taking over-the-counter or prescription medications."Medications can cause dry eyes, especially antihistamines or those used to control blood pressure. If it's a short-term situation, consider using eye drops or temporarily discontinuing contact lens wear. If your dry eyes are caused by medications you'll be taking on an ongoing basis, your doctor may recommend nutritional supplements, punctal occlusion or changing your contact lenses. menu
"When wearing contacts, my eyes occasionally feel dry."If your dryness symptoms are only occasional, your best remedy might be over-the-counter eye drops. All drops and lenses are not compatible; be sure to follow your doctor's recommendations.

"I can't wear my contacts as long each day as I’d like."End-of-day discomfort has long been a challenge to contact lens wearers. A real breakthrough in this area has been the advent of silicone-hydrogel lenses; they generally have the ability to transmit greater amounts of oxygen to the eye than traditional lenses, and some silicone hydrogels are less prone to dehydration. Another strategy is to try a traditional contact lens that has — although this sounds counterintuitive — a lower water content than your present lens.

"I have allergies."If you notice irritation while outside or around pets, you may have ocular allergies. Also, if you have allergies that you regularly treat, you may notice that your eyes get involved during peak periods such as pollen season.
This can be a twofold problem involving both your lenses and your eyes. Lenses may collect allergens, which then irritate your eyes. Keeping your lenses clean can help, which means possibly changing your cleaning method or using daily disposable contact lenses.
Your doctor may also be able to relieve the itching associated with allergies with either over-the-counter or prescription eye drops.

"I have other medical problems."Some medical problems, such as allergies, Sjogren's syndrome, thyroid conditions, hormonal changes brought on by menopause, and skin conditions such as acne rosacea, can cause vision problems or eye irritation, especially irritation from dryness. Dry eye is also a common side effect of many over-the-counter and prescription medications, such as antihistamines or blood pressure medications. Dry eye is a condition that can cause your eyes to feel gritty or appear red.

"I don’t follow my doctor's contact lens care instructions."It's extremely important that you follow your eye doctor's cleaning and care instructions. Unclean lenses won't be comfortable, and they can spawn other eye problems.
Often people who complain that their contact lenses are uncomfortable are either not cleaning them well enough or wearing them too long before cleaning or replacing them. For example, if you have contact lenses that should be thrown out after two weeks, don't wear them any longer than that.
To avoid lens care altogether, an option is daily disposable contact lenses.

"I spend time in dry or dusty environments."Where you wear your lenses can be just as important as how long you wear them. If you work in a dusty place, debris may get caught easily between your lens and your eye and cause discomfort, even if you can't see it. One remedy for this is orthokeratology.

"I use my computer a lot."You may experience dryness, eye strain or redness if you spend a lot of time on the computer. One cause is less frequent blinking, but other factors can influence vision comfort during computer use. There are many things your doctor will consider if he or she suspects you have "computer vision syndrome," a catch-all term for computer-related eye complaints.

Discomfort Remedies
Artificial tearsArtificial tears can relieve occasional dryness. Follow your doctor's recommendations, because some brands of drops are not compatible with certain types of contact lenses. Incompatible drops can discolor and ruin lenses. Also, not all drops are designed and approved for use with contact lenses.
Avoid products advertised to "get the red out" — their job is to constrict the eye's blood vessels. That eliminates the red appearance but doesn't treat the underlying problem.

Nutritional supplements
To be comfortable in contact lenses, you need to produce enough tears. But it's not just the quantity of tear production that important, it's the quality. For example, poor tear chemistry can lead to rapid tear evaporation — which is just as much a problem as not producing enough tears in the first place.
Research has found that the omega-3 fatty acids found in salmon and other fish, as well as flaxseed oil, seem to improve the oily part of tear composition, which discourages tear evaporation.

Punctal occlusion
This involves blocking your tear ducts by inserting a tiny piece of silicone or acrylic, called a punctal plug, to decrease tear drainage and thereby keep more tears in your eyes. Temporary, dissolving plugs are available so you can "test drive" this option to see if it works for you.

Contact lenses for dry eyes
If your current lenses fit well and you still experience discomfort, you and your eye care professional may decide to switch to a different type of lens or a different wear schedule. There are myriad types of contact lenses available today, and patients sometimes find newer options are more comfortable than their old lenses. Advances in the materials and designs used to manufacture contact lenses have made it easier for doctors to choose the lens that will best fit your eye and your condition.

Daily disposables
If lenses with built-up deposits are making you uncomfortable, then starting each day with a new lens may help. This is especially true if you suffer from allergies and are bothered by the airborne allergens that can stick to your lenses; or if your tear chemistry is such that difficult-to-remove lipids and proteins are accumulating on your lenses. Several brands of daily disposables are available from the major contact lens manufacturers.

Lower water lenses
You might think that lenses with a high percentage of water content would be moist and comfortable; but it's often the opposite. Lenses with a high water content need to be in a very moist environment, or they will dehydrate and become uncomfortable. If your eyes are dry, you might benefit from a lower-water lens than what you're currently wearing.

Silicone hydrogels
These relatively new lenses allow more oxygen to reach the eyes, which can mean greater comfort, and they tend to dehydrate less than traditional lenses. Silicone hydrogel brands include CIBA Vision's O2Optix and Night & Day, PureVision from Bausch & Lomb, and Johnson & Johnson's Acuvue Advance and Oasys.

FDA-indicated for dryness
Some non-silicone-hydrogel lenses have been specially developed to relieve dryness. For example, CooperVision's Proclear lens has FDA clearance for the claim: "may provide improved comfort for contact lens wearers who experience mild discomfort or symptoms relating to dryness during lens wear." Extreme H2O is a brand that does not have such an FDA designation but is favored by some practitioners for dry-eyed patients. menu
Contact lens care productsUse the brand of solution your eye doctor specifies. Using solutions or rewetting drops that aren't compatible with your contacts may degrade the quality of the lenses, affecting both visual quality and comfort.
Some lens care systems might work well for most people, but you might be the exception. If your lenses aren't getting clean enough, they can irritate or damage the surface of your eye. In this case, your doctor might switch you to a system that requires a bit more work on your part but may do the job better.

Even if your lens care solutions or eye drops work well at first, some people over time can develop sensitivity to certain formulas, especially those with preservatives. Your eye doctor may want you to switch to either non-preserved care systems or to daily disposable lenses, which require no cleaning solutions.

Contact Lense Tips

2006-07-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

Lasik
History, Procedure, Safety and efficacy

History

LASIK, an acronym for Laser-assisted In Situ Keratomileusis, is a form of refractive laser eye surgery procedure performed by ophthalmologists intended for correcting vision. The procedure is usually a preferred alternative to photorefractive keratectomy, PRK, as it requires less time for full recovery, and the patient experiences less pain overall. Many patients choose LASIK as an alternative to wearing corrective glasses or contact lenses.

The LASIK technique was made possible by Dr Jose Barraquer (Colombia), who around 1960 developed the first microkeratome, used to cut thin flaps in the cornea and alter its shape, in a procedure called keratomileusis. This procedure was developed and pioneered by the world leading Barraquer Clinic, based in Bogota, Colombia.
LASIK surgery was developed in 1990 by Dr. Lucio Buratto (Italy) and Dr. Ioannis Pallikaris (Greece) as a melding of two prior techniques, keratomileusis and photorefractive keratectomy. It quickly became popular because of its greater precision and lower frequency of complications in comparison with these former two techniques.
In 1991, LASIK was performed for the first time in the United States by Drs. Stephen Brint and Stephen Slade . The same year, Drs. Thomas and Tobias Neuhann successfully treated the first German LASIK patients with an automated microkeratome.

Procedure

Preoperative
Patients wearing soft contact lenses typically are instructed to stop wearing them approximately 7 to 10 days before surgery. One industry body recommends that patients wearing hard contact lenses should stop wearing them for a minimum of six weeks plus another six weeks for every three years the hard contacts had been worn. Before the surgery, the surfaces of the patient's corneas are examined with a computer-controlled scanning device to determine their exact shape. Using low-power lasers, it creates a topographic map of the cornea. This process also detects astigmatism and other irregularities in the shape of the cornea. Using this information, the surgeon calculates the amount and locations of corneal tissue to be removed during the operation. The patient typically is prescribed an antibiotic to start taking beforehand, to minimize the risk of infection after the procedure.

Operation
The operation is performed with the patient awake and mobile; however, the patient typically is given a mild sedative (such as Valium or diazepam) and anesthetic eye drops.
Lasik is performed in two steps. The initial step is to create a flap of corneal tissue. This process is achieved with a mechanical microkeratome using a metal blade, or a femtosecond laser microkeratome that creates a series of tiny closely arranged bubbles within the cornea.A hinge is left at one end of this flap. The flap is folded back, revealing the stroma, the middle section of the cornea. The process of lifting and folding back the flap can be uncomfortable.
The second step of the procedure is to use an excimer laser (193 nm) to remodel the corneal stroma. The laser vaporizes tissue in a finely controlled manner without damaging adjacent stroma by releasing the molecular bonds that hold the cells together. No burning with heat or actual cutting is required to ablate the tissue. The layers of tissue removed are tens of micrometers thick.
During the second step, the patient's vision will become very blurry once the flap is lifted. He/she will be able to see only white light surrounding the orange light of the laser. This can be disorienting.
Currently manufactured excimer lasers use a computer system that tracks the patient's eye position up to 4,000 times per second, redirecting laser pulses for precise placement. After the laser has reshaped the cornea, the Lasik flap is repositioned over the treatment area by the surgeon. The flap remains in position by natural adhesion until healing is completed.
Performing the laser ablation in the deeper corneal stroma typically provides for more rapid visual recovery and less pain.

Satisfaction

Various surveys have been performed to determine patient satisfaction with LASIK. Most of these surveys have found patients to be very satisfied, with anywhere from 92-98% of respondents describing themselves as satisfied. Those who are unsatisfied tend to be those who have had some of the above-described complications.

Safety and efficacy

The reported figures for safety and efficacy are open to interpretation. In 2003, the Medical Defence Union (MDU), the largest insurer for doctors in the United Kingdom, reported a 166% increase in claims involving laser eye surgery; however, the MDU averred that these claims resulted primarily from patients' “unrealistic expectations” of LASIK rather than “faulty surgery” . A 2003 study reported in the medical journal Ophthalmology found that nearly 18% of treated patients and 12% of treated eyes needed retreatment. The authors concluded that “higher initial corrections, astigmatism, and older age are risk factors for LASIK retreatment.”
In 2004, the British National Health Service's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) considered a systematic review of four randomized controlled trials before issuing guidance for the use of LASIK within the NHS. Regarding the procedure's efficacy, NICE reported, "Current evidence on LASIK for the treatment of refractive errors suggests that it is effective in selected patients with mild or moderate short-sightedness" but that "evidence is weaker for its effectiveness in severe short-sightedness and long-sightedness." Regarding the procedure's safety, NICE reported that "there are concerns about the procedure's safety in the long term and current evidence does not appear adequate to support its use within the NHS without special arrangements for consent and for audit or research." Leading refractive surgeons in the United Kingdom and United States, including at least one author of a study cited in the report, believe NICE relied on information that is severely dated and weakly researched.

LASIK

2006-07-18T03:11:00.000-07:00

Ready to Lose Your Glasses? Ten tips to choosing a LASIK or Laser Vision Correction Center

The world of ophthalmology is one of the fastest evolving fields of medicine. Never before have so many new techniques and scientific breakthroughs emerged in such a short period of time. LASIK surgery, which uses an excimer laser to reshape the cornea, offers millions of people the opportunity to reduce or eliminate their need for glasses or contacts.

Television and radio ads are filled with amazing stories about LASIK surgery as the fast and painless way to correct vision, but stories are also appearing about people for whom it was less than successful. Before you opt to go under the beam, what can you do to help ensure that you will be happy with your results?

The key to safe surgery in any field of medicine is an informed patient. Take a little time and research the LASIK center you are considering for laser eye surgery. Dr. Robert K. Maloney, voted by his peers as one of America’s Top Ten vision correction surgeons in a national survey by Ophthalmology Times, offers the following guidelines to quality care and treatment.

1. Find a doctor by getting referrals from other doctors or from patients who have had LASIK or laser vision correction.

2. Don't be fooled by fancy advertisements about a particular laser center. Choose the doctor, not the laser center. Find out who will actually do your procedure, then ask about that doctor’s qualifications (e.g., board certification, special training).

3. Choose a doctor who has done at least 5,000 LASIK or eye laser surgeries. What a doctor doesn’t know can hurt you.

4. Ask for information on your doctor’s LASIK eye surgery complication rates. If your doctor won’t tell you, find another one. For top surgeons, the figure is under 3 in 1,000.

5. Ask what measures are taken to prevent infection. Look for a center with a sterile or dust-free operating room. Make sure that disposable parts are not reused. Insist that your eye be thoroughly sterilized, and insist that the surgical instruments be sterilized before your eye laser surgery to eliminate the risk of transmission of HIV or hepatitis.

6. Beware of advertisements pushing “low cost” LASIK surgery. Discount surgery is as good as a discount parachute. The potential savings are not worth the risk of receiving less than expert care!

7. Expect to see very well after LASIK, but don't expect to see perfectly. Each patient gets a slightly different result. The best surgeon in the world can’t guarantee 20/20 vision. As with any eye laser surgery, results are as individual as each patient. Beware of any doctor who promises 20/20 vision.

8. If you feel like you're getting a hard sell, you probably are. Go elsewhere. You're not buying a car; this is real LASIK eye surgery.

9. If your level of nearsightedness is more than -11 or so, implantable lenses will probably offer better vision than LASIK. Consider waiting until the new lenses are available. Ask your doctor about them and other recent advances.

10. While you investigate, don't lose sight of the benefits: for most people a lifetime of bad vision can be cured in 5 minutes. LASIK eye surgery has improved the eyesight of millions of people around the world.

LASIK and LAser Vision Correction Center