Surprising Benefits of Lasik Surgery in Orange County
Lasik surgery in Orange County is one of the best ways to restore great eyesight. For people who’ve undergone Lasik surgery, some of the most significant impacts came from things that otherwise might go unnoticed. (more…)
Revitalize Your Job Performance with Lasik Surgery in Orange County
Poor vision has no place in the workplace. In fact, studies on employees with vision problems arrived at an alarming conclusion: that poor vision severely damages their job performance and career prospects. If you have astigmatism, farsightedness, and similar issues, Lasik surgery in Orange County can be your ticket to greater job satisfaction and excellence. (more…)
Get Roadworthy Vision with Laser Eye Surgery in Orange County
Vision problems spell trouble for safe driving. Driving involves several visual capabilities, such as night vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to switch focus at any given moment. If even one of these visual capabilities is compromised, you should start looking at laser eye surgery in Orange County as a viable option.
Driving Requires Complex Visual Skills
Research suggests that when it comes to middle-aged drivers, one in five take the road with imperfect sight. This makes sense, as age-related vision problems typically manifest when you enter your 40s. A lot of drivers don’t think much about the wide range of skills necessary to drive properly. Here are seven vision-related skills you need to navigate roads well.
- Night Vision
You should be able to see properly in low light levels, as well as recover quickly from headlight glare.
- Colour Vision
You should be able to distinguish various colors, which is critical for processing traffic lights, pedestrians, traffic signs, and other visual cues.
- Muscle Balance
When driving, you should be able to point your eyes at any given object while driving easily. This capability is essential for the field of vision, two-eyed vision, and depth perception.
- Accommodation
This is the ability to look quickly and easily from a near object to a far object and vice versa, such as looking at the dashboard to the road, then back again.
- Field of Vision
Your eyes should always be on the road, but you need to be able to look out of the corner of your eyes without moving your head. This allows you to take in pedestrians and crossroad traffic without taking your eyes off the road.
- Depth Perception
Perhaps one of the most common problems among drivers, depth perception is the capability to judge distances accurately between moving objects. This is vital for driving skills like changing lanes.
- Distance Acuity
This is the ability to see clearly and focus even at far distances. Distance acuity is crucial when it comes to making quick driving reactions.
Today’s roads are busier than ever, so a defect in even one of these visual skills can make it hard to drive safely. Keep in mind that almost 90% of decision you make on the road are based on information you get through your eyes. Fortunately, there’s a wide range of alternatives to choose from when it comes to vision correction.
Eyeglasses and Contacts May Not Be the Safest Option
One of the easiest ways to correct your eyesight is by wearing glasses or contacts. You run the risk of getting too much glare. They can also hinder your ability to distinguish road hazards, pedestrians, and vehicles while you’re driving.
In addition, vision problems may also stem from eye problems like glaucoma or cataracts. In such cases, you may also have to undergo cataract surgery in Orange County to ensure that your sight works well enough for the road.
For many drivers, corrective eye surgery offers the best chances of regaining excellent vision with minimal disruption to your driving routine. Visit the Excel Laser Vision Institute and talk to our expert Lasik surgeon in Orange County to determine if laser eye surgery is right for you.
Your LASIK Surgeon Can Give You Advice About Proper Nutrition After Surgery
If you’re having vision trouble, you might have considered seeking out a LASIK surgeon Orange County. If you have sought one out and you’ve decided to move forward with LASIK, then you probably have some questions about how best to take care of yourself after the procedure. To ensure that you heal as quickly as possible, you need to eat the right foods. In this article, we’ll talk a little about that.
Proper Nutrition Is Important
Nutrition is always necessary, but it might be even more so when your body is healing from surgery. You’re going to want to limit your consumption of processed and prepared foods. Instead, go for protein, which contains amino acids that will help with tissue regeneration and will speed up healing. Lentils, nuts and beans, low-fat dairy products, eggs, fish, and poultry will all be useful to you during the weeks after the procedure. Cold water fish are loaded with Omega-3 fatty acids, and these are good for eyesight. They also improve the tear film’s oily layer, which is especially handy because the eyes are drier than usual following LASIK.
Carbohydrates are also beneficial, just make sure that they’re the right ones. Eat high-fiber carbs during the healing process, including vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. Avoid white bread or refined carbs. You can also eat beans, legumes, and carrots. Carrots are perfect snack food while healing because they are full of Vitamin A, which improves eyesight.
You’re going to want vitamins, but most especially A and C. There are pill forms for both, but you can also get them in food by eating sweet potatoes, citrus fruits, dark, leafy greens, tomatoes, and sweet bell peppers. Most LASIK surgeons will probably tell you to consume Omega-3 pills for several months after the surgery. Flax-seed oil serves this purpose as well.
With the right diet, the chances are much higher that there will be no complications, and you will enjoy the full benefit of your surgery. In addition to eating the foods mentioned above, you should drink plenty of water, to flush any toxins out of your system that might be sticking around following the procedure. Eight 8-ounce glasses of water are the minimum recommended. With the right fuel in your body, you should be able to heal fully, and hopefully you’ll have the vision improvement for which you were looking.
Four Questions to Ask LASIK Surgeons Before Committing to Surgery
LASIK surgery is one of the best ways to correct refractive errors like nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. The procedure is completed by experienced LASIK surgeons. In Los Angeles and Orange County, for one, surgeons are well-trained and experienced in using a special laser that allows them to reshape the lens in the affected eye. The procedure is incredibly safe and highly effective.
Of course, the fact that a laser is involved can make some patients feel uneasy. This is why it’s best to discuss the procedure with various Lasik surgeons in Orange County and Los Angeles. To help you assess the capabilities of Lasik surgeons in Los Angeles and all of California, here are four important questions you should ask them.
How many LASIK surgeries have you performed?
When it comes to surgical procedures, knowing that your surgeon has done this numerous times before can help put you at ease. Similarly, LASIK surgeons can easily lean on their experience to help you achieve the best possible result. Don’t hesitate to ask your surgeon to provide you with a ballpark figure of how many procedures he has performed since he started offering LASIK surgery services.
Should I avoid certain medication before the procedure?
Some types of medication may interfere with the effectiveness of the sedative used during the procedure. Others may also increase the pressure in your eye or cause a less ideal condition for the procedure. Make sure you inform your LASIK surgeon about any medication, both OTC and prescription medicine, you may be taking. Your doctor can help identify which ones you may need to stop taking a week before the procedure.
Where will the procedure be done?
LASIK surgeons will often perform the procedure wherever the LASIK machine is located (the machines are quite large and heavy). Make sure you ask where the procedure will be conducted as it may be performed at a different location than your surgeon’s office. It may be a good idea to see the vision center where the procedure will take place a few days before you undergo LASIK surgery.
What kind of results should I be expecting?
Ideally, your LASIK surgeon will be honest with you and set your expectations about the kind of results the procedure will accomplish. LASIK surgery is used to treat a wide range of refractive errors, but the severity of the error may impact the results of the procedure. If you have a severe refractive error, your surgeon may need to repeat the procedure several years down the road.
Finding the Best Lasik Surgeon in Orange County and All of California
Here at Excel Laser Vision Institute, our resident surgeon, Dr. Ferzaad Moosa, is a Harvard-trained refractive specialist and board-certified Ophthalmologist who has both experience and expertise to perform Lasik surgeries. If you are looking for a Lasik surgeon to entrust your eye care needs with, Dr. Moosa can definitely answer your questions and provide you with the solutions you need.
Schedule a free consultation with our resident surgeon today, and get the answers to all your questions!
Important Details to Know Before Deciding to Get Laser Eye Surgery
Our bodies become more susceptible to wear and tear as we get older – our joints become frailer, memory isn’t as sharp, and vision becomes blurry. For these issues, there are various solutions to focus on them. One of the more pioneering procedures to ever appear in the last few decades is laser eye surgery.
What is a Laser Eye Procedure?
Many people ask about laser eye surgery costs because it is a very sought-after procedure since it is quick, safe, and painless. During a LASIK procedure, the LASIK surgeon creates a flap of tissue over the cornea and peels it back to have access to the cornea. Afterward, the laser will beam right into the eye to reshape the cornea, which is how the vision improves.
The whole procedure doesn’t take more than a minute. Once it is completed, the patient is given eye drops to ensure that their eyes don’t go dry.
Typically, LASIK surgery patients recover within 24 to 48 hours. This all depends on a person’s healing capabilities, but you can have peace of mind that you won’t have to wait a long time until you can see the world clearly again.
Who Should Get LASIK Surgery?
People who are sick and tired of wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses may want to go through LASIK surgery. This is a type of refractive eye surgery.
For the most part, many people who get laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) eye surgery attain 20/20 vision or better, which is sufficient for most activities. However, most people will still require glasses for driving at night or reading as they age.
LASIK has an excellent performance record. If there are ever complications that result in a loss of vision, they are rare, and many people are happy with their results. Specific side effects, especially dry eyes and temporary visual disturbances (such as glare), are fairly common. However, these usually clear up after a couple of weeks or months, and a minority of people think of them as long-term issues.
A person’s results rely on their refractive error and other factors. Those with mild nearsightedness usually have the most success with refractive surgery. Individuals with a high level of nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism have less predictable results.
Keep on reading about what to think about as you decide whether this surgery is suitable for you.
What Happens During LASIK?
There are quite a few variations of laser refractive surgery. LASIK is the most sought-after and most commonly performed eye surgery. Most of the time, the term “LASIK” is used to indicate all types of laser eye surgery.
Normally, images are focused on the retina that’s in the back of the eye. When it comes to nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism, they finish up being focused either in front of or behind the retina, ending in blurred vision.
- Nearsightedness (myopia) is a condition that lets you see objects nearby clearly, but objects that are far away appear blurry. When your eyeball is a little bit longer than normal or when the cornea curves too sharply, light rays focus in front of the retina and blur distant vision. A person can see objects that are close more clearly, but not those that are far away.
- Farsightedness (hyperopia) is a condition that lets you see objects far away clearly, but nearby objects are blurry. When you have a shorter than average eyeball or a cornea that is too flat, light focuses behind the retina rather than on it. This blurs near vision and occasionally distant vision.
- Astigmatism results in overall blurry vision. When the cornea curves or flattens unevenly, the outcome is astigmatism, which interrupts the focus of near and distant vision.
Normally, blurry vision is corrected by bending (refracting) light rays with glasses or contact lenses. Nevertheless, reshaping the cornea (the dome-shaped transparent tissue at the front of your eye) itself can provide the necessary refraction and vision correction
Prior to a LASIK procedure, your LASIK eye surgeon will determine the detailed measurements of your eye and assess the eye’s overall health. Your eye surgeon may ask you to take a mild sedative medication just before the procedure.
Eye-numbing drops will be administered once you are lying comfortably on an operating table. Then he or she will use a unique type of cutting laser to alter the curvature of your cornea accurately.
Whenever the laser beam sends a pulse, a very small amount of corneal tissue is taken off, allowing your eye surgeon to flatten the curve of your cornea or make it steeper.
Typically, an eye surgeon creates a flap in the cornea and then lifts it before reshaping it. Also, there are variations that involve a thin flap to be raised or no flap is used at all. Nonetheless, each technique has its pros and cons.
What are the Kinds of Laser Eye Procedures?
Every LASIK eye surgeon may specialize in specific types of laser eye procedures. Their differences are usually small, and none are clearly better than any others. Depending on your individual situation and preferences, you may consider:
- 1. Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK): It’s the most commonly performed eye laser surgery, LASIK involves making a partial-thickness corneal flap and utilizing an excimer laser to ablate the bed of the cornea. The flap is then put back into its original position. Discomfort after surgery is very little, and vision recovery usually takes place in 1 to 2 days.
- 2. Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK): With PRK, instead of creating a flap, the top surface (epithelium) is scraped away. This corneal abrasion takes three or four days to heal, and the outcome is moderate pain and blurred vision in the short term.
It was considered that these disadvantages were canceled out by the theoretical advantage that PRK was safer for those who are more likely to be stuck in the eye — for instance, those involved in law enforcement, military, or contact sports. However, even with standard LASIK, the risk of eyeball rupture is still very low, so there is probably no significant advantage with PRK. Additionally, LASIK is a better option than PRK for correcting more severe nearsightedness (myopia).
3. Laser-Assisted Subepithelial Keratectomy (LASEK): LASEK is no different from LASIK surgery, but the flap is made by using a special cutting device (microkeratome) and exposing the cornea to ethanol. The procedure lets the surgeon remove less of the cornea, making it a good option for those who have thin corneas. LASEK does not have any considerable advantages over LASIK for individuals at greater risk of eye injuries.
4. Epithelial Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis (epi-LASIK): In an epi-LASIK procedure, your laser eye surgeon separates the epithelium from the middle part of the cornea called the stroma) using a mechanized blunt blade device known as an epikeratome and reshapes the cornea with a laser. This procedure is similar to LASEK.
5. Small-Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE): This is a more contemporary type of refractive surgery that allows the eye surgeon to reshape the cornea. To do this, the surgeon uses a laser to make a lens-shaped bit of tissue known as the lenticule which is located below the cornea surface. When the lenticule has been used to reshape the cornea, it is then removed through a very small incision.
6. Intraocular Lenses: A laser eye surgeon can use surgically inserted corrective lenses in the eye, which are also known as intraocular lenses) to enhance vision. It’s normally carried out as part of cataract surgery, which involves removing the old, cloudy natural lens. Additionally, it may be an alternative to LASIK for older adults who may require cataract surgery in the future.
Younger people with high levels of nearsightedness that cannot be properly treated with corrective lenses may be offered intraocular lenses. However, these are not a typical options for most people.
7. Bioptics: Bioptics uses one or more techniques, such as intraocular lenses and LASIK, to treat nearsightedness or farsightedness.
If you want to discover more about LASIK procedures, contact Excel Laser Vision Institute at (310) 905-8622. A member from our dedicated team will be happy to answer all your questions about the type of refractive surgery that is best suited for you!
3 Preparation Tips for Best Results when Getting Laser Eye Surgery
An increasing number of people in southern California who experience vision problems are now turning to Orange County LASIK surgery to finally get the clear vision that they have always dreamed of. Although the actual procedure only takes up to 15 minutes, that doesn’t exempt you from needing to prepare for it. Here are the best steps you can take to prepare yourself for your operation, straight from our team to our valued patients:
Be Realistic. Understand What LASIK Can and Cannot Achieve
Familiarizing yourself with the entire process, from pre-surgery to aftercare, will make you feel more confident walking into your appointment. This particular type of laser eye surgery is designated to alter the shape of your cornea so that you can see more clearly, but it is not right for every patient. For instance, if you have excessively dry eyes or have a more serious and permanent vision impairment, the doctor can deny performing the procedure on you. In order to evaluate your candidacy, you will undergo a comprehensive eye examination, and the doctor will decide which strategy will be best for you.
Select a Highly-Skilled and Experienced Specialist
Selecting a LASIK surgeon who has extensive experience in his profession will ensure you get the best results for your money and your eye health. You want to choose somebody who knows exactly what they are doing, and you will be able to fully trust.
Plan Well Ahead of Time
While you can opt for LASIK surgery as long as you are at least 18 years old and have been approved by an ophthalmologist, a stable prescription lasting for a minimum of 2 years is required prior to your operation. Ask as many questions as possible during your consultation appointment, write them down and bring them to the office if it helps you remember all of them. If any new questions arise in between appointments, contact your doctor right away. Never wait until the last minute to ask important questions about your procedure.
Inform your employer in advance of your LASIK surgery so you may get a couple of days off from work. If you are still in school, you may want to consider scheduling your operation during a break so that you will not have to miss any of your classes. You should be prepared to feel discomfort following surgery, such as slight itching, burning, or watering. This is why you must plan to have somebody you trust drop you off and pick you up from the surgery ahead of time since you will not be allowed to drive.
Are You Ready to Change Your Life with LASIK?
Are you interested in LASIK but uncertain where exactly to start? If so, please reach out to our Brea office today to schedule your free consultation appointment! Our doctor can answer any questions you have, whether it be regarding your candidacy or the cost of laser eye surgery.
Can You Undergo a Cataract Surgery After Having a LASIK Eye Surgery?
Cataract surgery and LASIK eye surgery are two different methods to correct the eye, and no matter whether the procedure is performed at the LASIK Orange County clinic or somewhere else in the world, these two procedures will ultimately improve a person’s vision. Nevertheless, their similarity ends there, seeing that LASIK and cataract surgery are two separate procedures that fix two completely different eye health issues.
LASIK repairs vision issues such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism by reshaping the cornea of the eye. On the contrary, cataract surgery enhances vision by replacing the eye’s lens that has become cloudy because of aging or other factors.
What would happen if you both have these vision issues? Due to the fact that both surgeries would change the eyes dramatically, someone might believe that they only have to select one of the above to avoid any future complications.
Can You Undergo Cataract Surgery After LASIK Surgery?
You are probably dying to ask a LASIK surgeon like Doctor Moosa if you had LASIK surgery as a young adult, are you eligible for cataract surgery later in life? And the answer is yes, you can. If you are someone who has had LASIK, you can indeed have cataract surgery, if needed, in the future. However, this can only happen in this order. However, someone who has had cataract surgery, in many instances, is no longer eligible for LASIK or other refractive surgeries.
The Differences Between LASIK Surgery And Cataract Surgery?
To get a better awareness of the reason behind the fact that someone can have cataract surgery after LASIK surgery, it’s important to understand how both procedures work.
LASIK eye surgery and other refractive surgeries are carried out on the cornea, which is the dome-shaped, clear tissue that is on the front of the eye. During LASIK eye surgery, a laser changes the shape of the cornea so it refracts, or bends, light waves more accurately onto the retina (the light-sensitive tissue lining the back inner portion of the eyeball), giving the outcome of clearer vision.
On the other hand, cataract surgery is performed on the eye’s natural lens, which is positioned just behind the iris (the colored part of the eye). The lens’s job is to focus the light that goes through the eye onto the retina to create a sharp, crisp image.
A healthy lens should be transparent and clear. Patients who have cataracts experience a clouding of the lens which disrupts normal vision. When a cataract surgeon performs cataract surgery, the cloudy natural lens is removed and replaced with a synthetic lens, enhancing the clarity of a person’s vision.
Cataract Surgery Without Having Had LASIK
During cataract surgery, an artificial replacement lens is created to correct vision and replace prescription glasses. For patients who have not had refractive surgery, vision correction through cataract surgery is usually very straightforward and has a foreseeable outcome.
Once cataract surgery is completed, many patients experience clear distance vision without requiring eyeglasses, even though many will still require their reading glasses.
Cataract Surgery After LASIK Surgery
Nowadays, LASIK surgery is performed using modern equipment that takes precise measurements of the eyes. Nevertheless, it is still highly advisable for individuals who have had LASIK surgery to let their eye surgeon know all of their previous eye health history so that the correct lens implant be used for cataract surgery. If you don’t have any records of your previous eye health history, you can request them from the doctor who performed your LASIK surgery. If you can’t get these records, cataract surgery is still an option, however, the postoperative refractive error may not be as certain.
What Is LASIK Surgery?
Many people know LASIK surgery as a laser refractive surgery that helps to correct vision problems. LASIK (laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis) is a common alternative to wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses.
During LASIK surgery, an eye surgeon uses a special type of cutting laser to precisely reshape the dome-shaped clear tissue at the front of the eye (cornea) to enhance vision.
When eyes have normal vision, the cornea bends (refracts) light accurately onto the retina at the back of the eye. However, with nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia), or astigmatism, the light is bent the wrong way, and as a result of this, a person experiences a blurred vision.
A person can wear eyeglasses or contact lenses to correct their vision, but changing the shape of the cornea will also give the refraction needed for better, clearer eyesight.
Why Is LASIK Surgery Performed?
When a person asks for LASIK eye surgery cost, they may be looking into correcting one of these vision problems:
Nearsightedness (myopia). When a person’s eyeball is slightly longer than normal or when the cornea curves too strongly, light rays focus in front of the retina and blur distant vision. The person can see objects that are close very clearly, but not those that are far away.
Farsightedness (hyperopia). When a person has a shorter than average eyeball or a cornea that is too flat, light focuses behind the retina rather than on it. This makes near vision and in some instances distant vision, blurry.
Astigmatism. When the cornea curves or flattens unevenly, a person experiences astigmatism, which interrupts the focus of near and distant vision.
What Are the Risks Of LASIK?
It is very rare for someone to experience loss of vision because of LASIK surgery. However, there are specific side effects of LASIK eye surgery, especially dry eyes and temporary visual issues such as glare are pretty common.
These side effects usually go away after a few weeks or months, and very few people think of them as being a long-term issue.
Here are a few side effects to expect after LASIK surgery.
- Dry eyes
- Glare, halos and double vision
- Under corrections
- Overcorrections
- Astigmatism
- Flap problems
- Regression
- Vision loss or changes
If you are thinking about LASIK surgery, you most likely wear spectacles or contact lenses. Contact the professional eye care team at Excel Laser Vision Institute, which will guide you through LASIK surgery, cataract surgery, and any other type of refractive procedure that will work best for you.
