Archive for July, 2008

Imagine having worn glasses or contact lenses for 10, 15 or 20 years. Now imagine not having to wear any corrective lenses at all. Imagine the freedom of having near-perfect vision while engaging in sports activities, being able to see while swimming, or playing with your kids and not worrying about breaking your glasses. Such are the many blessings of taking advantage of laser eye treatment.

Laser eye treatment is a surgical procedure that corrects many vision disorders. Some of these common vision maladies are nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. There are two types of laser eye surgical procedures that can be accomplished on individuals. Those procedures are PRK or photorefractive keratectomy and Lasik surgery or keratomileusis.
PRK
The laser eye treatment known as PRK is a surgical procedure that is performed in an outpatient laser eye treatment clinic. To numb the area eye drops are applied that contain a local anesthetic. Once the anesthetic has taken effect the cornea of the eye is reshaped. This reshaping is accomplished by the surgical removing of miniscule amounts of tissue. This removal of tissue is accomplished through the use of an ultraviolet light beam. The success of this laser eye treatment is based upon the preciseness of the process and its ability to remove tissue down to billionths of an inch.

In addition, the reshaping of the cornea is not accomplished arbitrarily. The scientific and precise method of determining how much tissue is removed off of the cornea is determined through various measurements. These measurements are then imputed into the laser’s computer which results in the precise extraction of the cornea’s tissue. Generally, the entire procedure allows for the patients return to their daily activities in one to three days.
Lasik
The second laser eye treatment procedure is known as the Lasik procedure. The surgical process requires the use of a surgical knife and as such defines this practice as a more complicated method of laser eye treatment.

The Lasik laser eye treatment procedure begins with the surgeon using a surgical knife and cutting, in a circular form, the cornea. The flap is then pulled back and the exposed cornea is treated with a low powered laser. The laser then is utilized to remove a portion of the tissue. This process restructures the cornea and allows for the light captured by the eye, to be more succinctly refocused onto the retina. This laser eye treatment allows for the patient’s eyesight to improve significantly. The Lasik laser eye treatment is indicated for those patients whose vision requires the correction of more difficult refractive corrections.

When you are considering for a lasik laser eye surgery procedure, the first question you would probably asked is how much does the treatment is going to cost you. Unfortunately the answer is there is no one price fit for all. The price for this kind of procedure varies widely depending on many different factors. There are a lot of factors which the cost would depends upon.

Among them are geographical locations, depending upon where you are. Typical examples in the USA the price for Los Angeles lasik eye surgery is far different from Oklahoma City lasik surgery.

Your cost is also going to vary depending on your treatment facility. Small private clinic is going to charge you differently from specialized eye treatment center and hospital.

Another factor that will sway the price is the reputation of the hospitals or the facility where you are going to have your procedure done. In addition to that your doctors reputation and credentials will influence the price too.

So what is the typical Prices?

After mentioning all of the above factors, you might asked what is the average price. The typical costs of laser procedure for each eye is around $2000 dollars. These are the base price and they do not differ very much because this is the standard rate used globally.

Factors that are mentioned above would skewed the price one way or another. For instance local taxes, geographical locations, eye surgeons reputation and the royalty fees for the surgeons. Anyway for the most part the price normally stay within a given range.

Are there any additional Costs?

The figures that are quoted to you during consultation is normally the total amount that you have to pay. There will be additional amount only when there is follow up treatments or the cost for medication in case of complications.

Are there a Discount Price?

Lasik eye surgeon are facing a lot of competition these days. In order to stay in business they have to be very competitive, therefore they do offer some forms of discounts to patients.

Discounts and coupons offers are normally found in your local newspapers, mail in coupons or yellow pages and the internet. If you find the one that suit your budget then you want to make an appointment for consultation.

Some lasik surgery places even give a discount for payment by cash. This is a way to encourage you to pay cash instead of arrange for financing.

If you are above 65 you might get a senior citizen discounts at some lasik surgery centers. Be sure to inquire about the discounts during consultation.

Can You Find a Bargain?

If you don’t mind traveling to other cities to find bargain for lasik surgery, then internet is the best place for you to do bargain hunting. As mentioned above there is a price disparities between different geographical locations.

It would be great if you could get a bargain at a city that you always wanted to travel. You could kill two birds with one stone. Go for a vacation and come back with a new vision.

A lot of people are interested in getting the laser eye surgery done but they are scared of the complications that may come from it. Education is the key to calming down these fears as the risk factors are not as big as one may think. Also, a lot of people fear having to find the right doctor to do the job and feel that calling and meeting with one doctor at a time could be a big waste of time. The nice thing is though, that there is probably a laser eye surgery center near you in which a few or several highly trained individuals work there and are able to assist you with your surgery needs.

Consider it one stop shopping if you will, but no matter how you look at it, it is nice to know that in any one laser eye surgery center that you walk into, there will be more then one doctor to pick from. Lasik eye surgeons are likely to be found in these types of places, as it is a great way for them to get the business and practice that they need. So whether it is lasik or some other type of laser eye surgery, you are bound to find the doctor you need within the walls of the laser eye surgery center.

Finding One Near You

You have probably seen the commercials already for a laser eye surgery center near you and not even realized it. If you start paying extra attention to the advertisements on the radio and the television, you are bound to find the place you need and may even discover a special that they are running. Believe it or not, procedures done at the laser eye surgery center can and will run discounts once in a while making it that much more affordable to get the surgery done.

If you still cannot find a laser eye surgery center near you through advertisements, start asking people around you. They may know of a place they saw an advertisement for or they may have had the procedure done to themselves already. Also, it would not hurt to search the Internet for a laser eye surgery center, as there may be one that is at least in driving range for you, which means it is still worth the little trip. The point is, as long as you do your research and keep your eyes open, you will find the perfect place for your procedure.