Hi guys.

Has anyone asked the doctors before if it's possible to do any future surgeries if ever needed after doing PRK or LASIK?
I'm worried as I get older, I might need to go for cataract surgery or something in the future, and I'm worried doing LASIK/PRK now will hinder me from doing so in the future.

I've tried searching up older threads but haven't been able to find-not sure because it hasn't been brought up or I might have missed it.

yes, you still can go for cataract surgery, bring along your pre lasik full report especially the topography to the doctor for a more accurate calculation.

I'm currently enquiring about the procedure and looking into different centers. they've recommended 3 diff procedures, the following being around 6k+ in total.

iDesign Advanced CustomeVue is the custom make or tailor make treatment which involve the IR (iris register) program during the procedure. This is the very advance technology in US now.

to me this sounds like a marketing gimmick, but its also a laser that keeps on our iris fr mission precision during the surgery. anyone done this? worth the extra?

ICLS is too expensive for me

Sorry guys, just had this idea not to wear glasses anymore. I didn't go thru a whole thread for this.

Is relex smile recommended and what are the cost?

Would love to hear any good and bad with it.

PS : I'm from KL.

Hi, anyone with large pupil did relex before here? What was your experience? I was told that i have large pupil and maybe will have glare and halos at night after treatment? Still considering should i proceed.

which ophthalmologist did you visit ?

I went to Optimax for assessment and wanted to get second opinion on this.
They suggested Relex or Femto Lasik

Call me say promotion,after i do assessment quote actual price.

What's ur power ya?

I believe go for value rather than just looking at dollars and cents.

Warranty I think is good but I believe, once you have LASIK, you should just have it done once. Even with warranty, every repeated treatment just increase your risk for complications such as ectasia. Furthermore, if the regression is due to ectasia, the warranty means nothing as no one will retreat, and secondly, I don't think the warranty covers the cost of treatment for ectasia eg crosslinking or corneal transplant.

In short, its a marketing gimmick 😅

Anyway, most can't even retreat after LASIK as residual thickness may be already too thin. I'm sure there's a clause in the contract regarding the warranty that mentions that warranty will not apply if residual thickness is insufficient.

Hi Jialat
Hence I would like to go for second opinion and confirm the risk rather than to jump into it.
Doctor was not involve when I went to check in Optimax and optometrist answered that "maybe" i will face glare and halo permanently at night and will have to live by it but she said most people doesn't bother/impacted with it and can live normally. The answer doesn't convince me.
Also based on this thread, mentioned that relex smile might not be the best solution to fit me with larger pupil - this was not explain too.
I went for promotion price on eye checking, lasik + free checkup for 2 years and they have timeline until when this offer valid for me to have the treatment and feel rushing into it.

I booked my assessment in VISTA Cheras now but I saw you recommended Dr. Ainur.
Do you still recommending the same and may I know how Dr Ainur is better?

hi, yes for big pupil size, glaring will be an issue, must make sure treatment zone is big enough to cover the dilated pupil. night driving will be tough.

Dr Ainur is corneal specialist, not all eye doctor in lasik centres are trained specifically for cornea, they are usually general ophthalmologist. He is more careful in terms of checking on suitability for lasik, and very detailed. Once you have consulted him, you can make a very clear comparison and well informed decision. Many members here have consulted him before deciding on surgery, Dr Ainur will check the risk of post lasik complication for every patient.

Thanks.
How much is checking with Dr Ainur + consultation and do you still have referral?

Consultation fee is usually RM200+, referral can get 25% discount. Prepare 20-30min long consultation time because he will explain every part in detail and make sure you truly understand. He will go through all the pro and cons and possible complication post lasik specifically for your eyes according to the investigation results. He is specialized in cornea, so his explanation is more in depth than just merely "ok your eyes suitable for lasik"

Topography combined with Belin test is ard 200+. I think total is ard 400. i think its higher than other lasik centre, but its worth the reassurance and accuracy of his judgement.

I've canceled my LASIK 1 hour before the procedure.
Opinions are on my own and just want to share my experience and why I will not consider any vision correction procedure again, this is also to thank those fellow lowyat members that share their recommendations and experiences before. I'm a good candidate for Lasik, cornea thickness average close to 570 and the power for both eyes is about 400++ with almost no astigmatism, passed the belin test and was told I'm considered low risk in getting ectasia post-ops.

The known side effects didn't stop me, the doctor's consultation didn't stop me, the consent form is the one that made me decide to step on the brake.
Imagine 2 large sections there elaborate the complications that doctors may not be able or didn't through with you during the consultation session, if you sign it off and proceed with the procedure, touch wood if anything happens, you won't able to hold anyone responsibility since already sign it off through the consent.

More than 95% of patients are satisfied with the results, this is written in lots of ads and brochures that could be misleading. When I read the consent form, some side effects like dry eyes, halo, glare, cloudy/haze, and some complications are categorized as 'normal' side effects, this gave me an impression that if patients complain about these symptoms, it will still be categorized as 'satisfy' since these are 'common' side effects. And when I read further, there are more 'unforeseen' and 'unknown' side effects statements that the consent builds to protect the center, consultants and surgeons that perform the surgery for us.

Actually, getting complications is easier than getting a jackpot or 1st prize in toto. 95% means in 100 people, 5 persons are unsatisfied with the results, it could mean they've side effects and complications that they did not sign up for, do note that common side effects are already known, so they could experience something that unaware before the procedure. When you read the consent form, do read twice or thrice on statements like 'most', 'some' and 'rare'.

So I did a quick study overnight, known side effects are a small thing, complications are the ones that I wouldn't want to deal with.
1) Lasik - Flap complications, healing complications, ectasia, Corneal Neuropathic pain (the procedure will cut the nerves) that could lead to permanent chronic pain on the eye and head that led quite a number of the reported patients to suicidal thoughts or devastating impact on lifestyle ahead
2) Smile - Suction loss, black spots, opaque bubbles, lenticule ruptures and etc that no way written in the brochure and reports that given to us as 'education materials' (the consent form uses this term)

The common myth that I found out after I read the consent just before the operation.
1) The flap will heal - nope! It will not completely heal, its flap will just merely adhere back to your cornea, years later if the patient wants to get 'enhancement' or 'rectification', the flap can just easily open, and the cornea will be more fragile to all sorts of impact, virus, and infections
2) Nerves will grow back - Partially correct, but will not be as strong as before and will be more sensitive, and if didn't grow back nicely... hmm... at least i know how eyes problem tied to headaches
3) Vision correction procedure are totally Safe (Lasik, Smile, PRK and etc) - No it's not, any surgery comes with risks, people (like me!) tend to be optimistic and focuses on things that are good and ignores the negative things
4) There are other procedures as backup to fix the first failure - there are no cure or procedure that could give you back your vision or cornea, and provided that if the patient is qualified for 2nd procedure.
5) If healing is good and stabilizes after a year, all good - Nope, research, and reports show that quite a number of patients reports complications years after the procedure, 3, 5 or after 10 years, surgeon start to trace back these complications are related to the procedure that they underwent years ago.

Personally, I underwent sinus surgery before, the surgeon told me the infection rate is less than 1% amongst her cases. But, I'm the unlucky one, was the 1%, 1 of the 2 cases in her past 10++ years of practice.
It's medical surgery, not beauty surgery, suggest don't sign up unless you are mentally and financially prepare for all those complications. Marketing and packages of these procedures are getting better and better (since FDAS approval back in 1999), I almost trust is safe since so many people go for it. Generally, when new tech comes out, people tend to blame the inefficiency or problems on old tech. In this case, LASIK considers an older tech that commercial centers now promotes SMILEs could blame all these reported side effects. I think some consultants are just trained to sell rather than care about my eye. Suicide cases or depression cases for failed vision correction procedures could be more than what has been reported!

So, I decided not to gamble my healthy cornea. Afterall, I've only 1 pair of healthy eyes and cornea.
I would rather stick to glasses, at least the 1.5k spent for the consultation and checks let me know if the optometrist that prescribed me the specs are good and my cornea is healthy, lesson learned.

My intention is not here to spread the fear, just the awareness!

This post has been edited by cl87: Oct 8 2021, 10:13 PM

Hi jialat, i am keen to get LASIK, read alot of post and comments here.

So far, the top recommended doctor is Dr. Ainur. May i ask if Prof Muhaya is recommended? If Dr. Ainur is better, could you share me a referral letter for consultation?

Prof Muhaya is not corneal specialist, she is general ophthalmology consultant.

Dr Ainur is corneal specialist trained specifically on cornea cases, all lasik involve cornea.

pm me if you decided to see Dr Ainur. I will arrange discount on consultation fee for u. tq

just did my lasik & cxl last week Thursday. Is it normal that my vision is not clear after 1 week? I can see close objects clearly but not far objects. All of my friends who did lasik can see very clear the next day after the surgery. So i wonder if my case is normal.

Did they not explain any of this during consultation?

I looked up scientific papers of Relex Smile, the longest study cited was 5 years. Results were as follows: 5 years postoperatively, no significant change to the 6-month data was found. Spherical equivalent was −0.375 D and therefore close to target refraction (emmetropia). 32 of the 56 eyes had gained 1–2 Snellen lines. There was no loss of 2 or more lines over the 5-year period. Regression in the long term was 0.48 D.

I'm still in the discovery stage - after looking around, decided to go to Optimax TTDI. I originally chose U*J Specialist but when I told my regular optical shop (where I buy my glasses and contacts from) they were like NOOOOOOO don't go there, many people who go there have complications. I had a friend who went there and had a very good experience, so I reckon it makes sense that these people only heard the horror stories, since the horror stories would be the one who would still need glasses after the surgery. Plus my regular optical shop is nearby the U*J shop, so I figured that's why.

Still, it gave me enough pause to find another provider. Still a bit unsure - going for full check up before deciding to actually proceed or not. Only one pair of eyes leh - but at the same time, not like lot of money also.

Source: Five-year results of Small Incision Lenticule Extraction (ReLEx SMILE)

Is it recommended for a 40 years old high power to undergo the lasik? Heard that doing it around this age is like a waste 😅

Any comment on this?