Last Updated on Monday, 21 December 2009 11:04 Written by Kristie Nealy M.D

Common Questions about Laser Eye Surgery¹

What are the risks associated with laser eye surgery?

• According to the Royal College of Ophthalmologists complications occur in less than 5% of cases.

• Some people have a problem with dry eyes in the months after surgery and artificial tear supplements might be needed in the long term.

• Many patients have experienced glare or halo effects when night driving, particularly just after treatment. This is more likely the higher the correction that has been made, but is rarely severe.

What is the recovery time?

• Most patients have a reasonably comfortable period after surgery and are back at work within a few days to a week. Depending on the vision correction attempted, it is advisable not to drive for one to two weeks after surgery.

• Tinted spectacles with ultraviolet  protection are needed when out in the sun for the first three months.

Can Laser eye surgery help with age-related vision loss?

• No, laser surgery will not be able to cure age-related presbyopia and the need for reading glasses or bifocals/varifocals that people often develop in their mid-40's.

• This is because presbyopia is not caused by the eye being long or short sighted but is caused because the lens inside the eye becomes less flexible with age.

Can both eyes be done on the same day?

• Yes, but your consultant should outline the risks.

Is laser surgery a permanent solution?

• The more operations a surgeon has carried out the higher the success rate, check what results your surgeon has had and the number of patients who have had to come in for further treatment to improve on the initial results.

• One in three people will still need glasses for some purposes, such as night driving and some people find that they may begin to become long- or short- sighted again some time after surgery.  If this happens it may be possible to have a re-treatment done.

• People who are short sighted can often read close up without their spectacles. It is important to realise that if the short sight is corrected with laser (or any other type of) surgery then these people will probably need reading spectacles in their forties because of presbyopia.