$299.00, Financing available, Limited time offer etc etc. LASIK eye surgery is rapidly becoming just another commodity like shoes or cars. Every where we look there are LASIK ads with discounts, specials and financing offered by “doctors” that are vying for a percentage of the 3 million Americans rushing to have LASIK every year. Don’t be surprised if one day you can visit your local Wal-Mart and leave an hour later having had LASIK by a “professional who has done millions” We may even start seeing signs akin to McDonald’s 3,456,000 served!! There doesn’t seem much difference between the ads and techniques used to sell LASIK and those used to sell used cars.
What has happened to the great American medical standards and ethics touted for years? It is amazing to read that eye surgeons in the United States are still offering regular LASIK and for only $1,000 more “you too can have wavefront Technology.” For those who aren’t LASIK savvy, wavefront is a better diagnostic tool that maps your cornea. In South America, where eye surgery technology has always been at the forefront, surgeons will only use wavefront. There is no option because it is just better for the patient period!! American eye surgeons are also still performing PRK on those patients who don’t qualify for LASIK rather than using multifocal Intraocular Lens which was only approved 1 year ago in the States but has been used for over ten years by South American surgeons.
So if you are considering having LASIK remember this is a surgery on the cornea of your eye so be sure to educate yourself about all the possible risks and complications. Find the best possible doctor you can, not just the least expensive and make sure you are really a good candidate for the surgery and not just another number on the billboard and finally if cost is an issue you may need to resolve yourself to wearing glasses or do what thousands of people do and go to South America and have it done by some of the best eye surgeons in the world, spend half and have a vacation.