Hello and welcome to LASIKCONSUMERREPORT.com.

 

As a LASIK patient myself and as an eye surgeon specializing in LASIK, I know firsthand what it is like to consider LASIK, to have the procedure, and finally to enjoy its liberating benefits.

 

In this CONSUMER REPORT, I provide an “insider’s guide” to LASIK. Patients should be armed with knowledge about how to evaluate different doctors and clinics since many offices promote LASIK through marketing in newspapers, radio and television. LASIK is a procedure, not a product. A prospective patient must have the knowledge to discern 1) if the glasses and contact lens prescription is in the LASIK range; 2) whether the prospective surgeon is qualified and capable since surgical skill is paramount to good results; and 3) if proper eye evaluation is performed preoperatively.

 

Over three years ago, I began holding a Refractive Surgery Diagnostic and Repair Clinic for patients who had difficulties after LASIK and other vision correction procedures. I diagnosed and treated patients who ranged from not being good candidates initially to misdiagnosed problems postoperatively. For every patient, I explained what happened, what might have been done to prevent it, and what the options were for repair. I often heard, “…if I had only known that this test should have been done before surgery to see if I was a good candidate…” or “…I wish I knew how to evaluate a surgeon’s qualifications…”

 

Patient education is imperative before LASIK. For years I have routinely held LASIK seminars for the community in Los Angeles. Beyond my public education seminars, the only other venue for my advice to potential patients is through media expert interviews by various television and radio news programs or newspapers and magazines. I know from feedback that these segments have proven invaluable for public education. The LASIK CONSUMER REPORT expands the scope of information in those media reports and makes the information readily available to people across the United States who are considering the LASIK procedure.

 

I have published this LASIK CONSUMER REPORT online for persons considering LASIK surgery and who need to know the right questions to ask.

Sincerely,

Brian S. Boxer Wachler, M.D.