PRK Surgery

Has anyone here had experience with the surgery? Any info/advice/personal experience would be great to see!

"Not only am I member, but I'm also president"

I have both had the surgery done and performed the surgery.

For the right patient it is a life changing procedure. For others the risk isn't worth the benefit. Only you and your physician can make that decision as a team.

I think overall PRK has been shown to be a safe and effective procedure in the correction of myopia.

Well, I got a recommendation for LASIK last week for my eyes. If that pans out I will be able to talk about that!

I had lasik and DD had PRK at Bathesda. Both worked out great. Unbelievable to not need the glasses to see the alarm clock the next morning. Only consultation with a good Physician can tell you if it is right for you. I do however now need weak reading glasses just like any other old fogie. By the way, LASIK hurt like a welding burn after the drops wore off. Doctor said that was a good discription. I told him he should up the dose.

Hornet, question. Didn't u already have a pilot slot? Did your eyes change considerably in the last 2 years? Did u have a contact waiver?

My son had PRK last summer - approved by his NROTC unit in advance - since he is a NROTC midnshipman, even as a dependent (father retired) Bethesda said they consider PRK elective and not available for dependents. He had the surgery done at john hopkins - PRK did change my son's life - has 20//20 now - currently doing his 1st class summer in the aviation community at Key West. If the poster is just asking about the surgery in general okay, but if he is asking because he is a scholarship guy - then at least for navy, and a couple years ago, my son's unit had him wait until after is sophmore year, telling him he could go get it done then. The 6mos checkup was at xmas and then 1 yr just this month - he kept his NROTC unit informed at each step. Only small issue was last august, shy of 2mon checkup - doctor wrote up current facts (was 20/20 then) still using some drops but had to wear sunglasses for first 6 mons. My son had to take that to school's infirmary - based on that he had special permission to wear sunglasses, plain black, during fall - it expired upon returning in january - with 6mo report for eye dr. larrys mom

Christcorp said:

Hornet, question. Didn't u already have a pilot slot? Did your eyes change considerably in the last 2 years? Did u have a contact waiver?

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Mike,

I do still have my pilot slot and my AFSC is still 92T0. My eyes have been stable for 5 years. I had a vision waiver for my slot (astigmatism).

The civilian ophthalmologist I have seen in the last two weeks used to practice in Phoenix and routinely did LASIK for the F-16 pilots there. He felt like I was a good candidate. He uses the latest LASIK techniques and they helped design the newest laser systems (of which few exist). The specific technique is wavefront LASIK. My eyes aren't bad enough for PRK, but within the DoD requirements for LASIK (thankfully, I'd rather get LASIK than PRK).

I got PRK at Bethesda last September. AWESOME DECISION (if I may say so...).

The surgery itself wasn't too bad. A little unsettling, but not bad. Not sure how they work it for Coasties, but there's so many mids who go that it's basically an assembly line process.

The weekend following was less than fun, but could have easily been worse. PRK has a slower recovery than LASIK. Everyone recovers differently: I was off the percocet and numbing drops within 36 hours or so and up and about the next night. Some of my friends were rolling around in their racks, shielding themselves from the light like vampires, all weekend. Either way, all you'll want to do is sleep until it's time to take your pain drugs (and then immediately go back to sleep) for the first day or two.

My vision took a little while to settle, but I was at ~20/40 in both eyes by the one day check up and 20/20 in both eyes by the 3 month check up (from 20/60 and 20/200) and got cleared for pilot/NFO by precomms in the spring. There was at least one person in my class who was cleared for flight vision-wise BEFORE the surgery and PRK messed it up, but I think they were on the verge of being eligible for the surgery so it was a near thing anyway.

When you go down they tell you all these horror stories, but if you're a good candidate and take care of yourself after the surgery, it seems to have a very high success rate.

Sucess Rate sems to be very high!

Talked to my optometrist on base here. Apparently my uncorrected vision is actually 20/20 in my left eye and 20/25 in the right. Just my astigmatism causes things to blur (smearing effect). So...no surgery needed! lol. Nevermind then.

I had LASIK done and was slightly undercorredted so I wouldn't have to wear glasses for reading. However as the years went on my myopia has returned and once again I'm not seeing so well. I did the procedure 8 years ago and wasn't told had to wait until your vision stabilized. I' considering redoing this but I'm not sure if it can be redone.

Kp2001 can I do this again or is this risky?

duanrrk said:

think USAFA has been a bit busy with other things lately, between I Day and the Waldo Canyon Fire, etc. That said, the latest I've heard is just what was said earlier - that most of those cadets would get remediation if they just cheated (which is evidently okay ) as long as they didn't lie about it as well (two strikes and you're out?! ). ]

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methinks you may want to look into the procedure that is in fact the subject of this thread

Update: Currently routing the paper work to get the eye surgery done. Eyes have been cleared by the civilian doctor that I'm going to do it with, and luckily my corneas are thicker than average, so I have the option of doing LASIK as well as PRK. I'm planning on going with whatever the doctor thinks is best. Anyone have any advise? Gotta admit I'm nervous about getting it!

SamAca10 said:

Update: Currently routing the paper work to get the eye surgery done. Eyes have been cleared by the civilian doctor that I'm going to do it with, and luckily my corneas are thicker than average, so I have the option of doing LASIK as well as PRK. I'm planning on going with whatever the doctor thinks is best. Anyone have any advise? Gotta admit I'm nervous about getting it!

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Sam, Is LASIK now allowed for aviation in the CG? My son should be going through this at the CG in a couple of years.

I had my pre-operation check up done about 2 weeks ago and I am (as of now) cleared to get PRK. Only problem is, my whole family is basically against me getting the procedure (they cite safety risk) and some of them are sort of unsettling. My question is - are there long term risks (like 20, 40 years down the road) associated with PRK?

The first PRK surgery was done in 1987, and technology has changed over that time.

Everyone's eyes are unique. As much as people here want to help, this surely isn't the right place to ask for advice on what to expect in 20 to 40 years.

EDelahanty said:

The first PRK surgery was done in 1987, and technology has changed over that time.

Everyone's eyes are unique. As much as people here want to help, this surely isn't the right place to ask for advice on what to expect in 20 to 40 years.

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FWIW, my son had PRK several years ago while still in high school (timing of which triggered an automatic DODMERB DQ, later waived). To date he has experienced no side effects and is an enthusiastic adherent of PRK.

got Lasik!

Thought I should let all of you guys know that it's been 8 days since I received lasik eye surgery, and things are going really well so far. My vision in one of my eyes is almost 20/15, while the other is 20/40 uncorrected. My doctor said it'll take awhile before both eyes are good, and I'm excited to see those results. Definitely one of the better decisions I've made.

Sam, congrats on having your procedure.
The guy sitting 12 inches to my left as I type this had LASIK in Novermber of 1999 at the age of 36. Within a couple days post-op his visual acuity was 20/20 right and 20/15 left and 20/15 together. He actually the the gall to complain about the 20/20 eye. Now surprisingly he has made it to the age of 48 without the use of reading glasses. That is not normal. Most people will require the use of reading glasses right around the age 40 if they are NOT nearsighted. ( as the result of his surgery delivered) His overall acuity is still in the 20/20 range. Now he did have his expectations exceeded but he was also instructed on what the true purpose of the procedure is, which is to reduce the dependency on eyeglasses and contact lenses. Keep in mind quality of vision is as important as quantity. Not everything can be measured on a 20/20 chart. That is just a good way to describe quantity of vision.
I know this information first hand not because I was dutiful wife hand holding but rather I was the Refractive Surgery Coordinator who did his primary evaluation and saw him on every visit pre and post op. We gave such good personal patient service, I married the patient. Or as my husband says , he will be paying for LASIK for the rest of his life! HA
I highly recommend you "shop" for the physician who will do your procedure. If at all possible seek out a cornea specialist. If someone has a problem they are going to be referred to a corneal specialist to have it fixed so why not start there. There were only four in the entire state when my DH had his procedure. I worked for two of them.

On this forum we are primarily talking about patients who are barely young adults. A stable eyeglass and or contact lens prescription is a must. Enhancements are possible but no surgeon ( worth going to) is going to preform the surgery before the demonstration refractive error stability. That usually is after a patient is 21. Sometimes the surgery is better for someone who is so nearsighted that even an 80% improvement in vision makes a difference in someone's quality of life. Again it comes down to managed expectations. Also a consideration is how good of a contact lens wearer the patient is and how that adversely effects their lifestyle. dH's occupation makes glasses a hazard and working conditions not suited for irritation free contact lens wear. Once we managed the " you are going to need reading glasses in a few years" fact, DH was given a green light to proceed. Under promise and over deliver.

I am seriously considering getting PRK and only have to get an appointment to have it done. Can anyone who has had it done or has professional experience with it tell me about the side effects that have been reported and their severity?