LASIK Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
LASIK Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) The following LASIKfrequently asked questions (FAQ) was retrieved from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website located here http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/lasik/expect.htm. This information is presented as a guide to anyone interested in vision correction through laser eye surgery. Please consult a doctor before any surgical procedure involving your eyesight.Q:How do I report a bad experience or who do I notify about a 'bad' doctor? A: If you had a bad experience or sustained an injury, you should file a voluntary MedWatch report (1-800-FDA-1088) to the FDA. Also, you could contact your state medical licensing board and file a complaint with them. In addition, you could contact your state health department or consumer complaint organization (e.g., Better Business Bureau). Q: How much does LASIK cost? A: The FDA regulates the safety and effectiveness of medical devices for their intended use. The FDA does not regulate the marketing of or any fees associated with the use of that product. Again, you may want to go to your library and see if there is a local community services magazine that may provide comparison information of services for doctors in your area. Q: If the laser I am interested in has not yet been approved for a particular indication, how can I find out when it will be approved? A: Confidentiality restrictions prohibit FDA from commenting on the status of a device under regulatory review, but you can try asking the laser company for this information. Q: How does wavefront LASIK compare to conventional LASIK? A: Wavefront adds an automatic measurement of more subtle distortions (called higher order aberrations) than just nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism corrected by conventional LASIK. However, these “higher order aberrations” account for only a small amount (probably no more than 10%) of the total refractive error of the average person’s eye. Conventional LASIK increases higher order aberrations. Although wavefront-guided treatments attempt to eliminate higher order aberrations, results from the clinical studies have shown that the average aberrations still increase, but less than they do after conventional LASIK. In a few studies comparing wavefront-guided LASIK to conventional LASIK, a slightly larger percentage of subjects treated with wavefront LASIK achieved 20/20 vision without glasses or contact lenses compared to subjects treated with conventional LASIK. Patient selection and the experience and competence of the surgeon are still the most important considerations.
