What If I am Not a Candidate for Lasik

Four out of ten patients that come to see us are not candidates for Lasik eye surgery. Of these, two can have PRK. So 20% of patients can only have PRK. When we do our monthly statistical analysis we note that we do 50% PRK. This is because 3 out of 10 candidates that qualify for Lasik request PRK. These patients select PRK because they do not want to have a corneal flap. This is the major advantage of PRK over Lasik. The advantages of Lasik involve convenience; faster recovery and less postoperative discomfort. Patients undergoing PRK have a median pain score of 3/10 for the first 24 hours and patients can return to work on Monday if they have the procedure on a Thursday. Patients are often 20/40 by Monday and improve dramatically over the next week. It is important to note that the visual results of LASIK and PRK are the same by three months.