Recovery after laser eye surgery: what to expect
As in all surgery, the recovery time for patients after PRK or LASIK laser eye treatment is not instantaneous. Even if the initial recovery phase for PRK patients lasts barely a few days, stabilisation of vision occurs only after one or two months, and achieving maximum vision can take up to six months. Here are a few recovery stories of typical patients' experiences after laser eye surgery.
Recovery after PRK eye surgery
Even if there’s no way to predict how much pain people undergoing PRK laser eye surgery will feel, most patients complain of only mild discomfort. Common symptoms include light sensitivity, tearing, puffiness or an itching feeling. Two out of ten PRK patients experience more considerable pain, but that only lasts for one or two days after the laser eye surgery has taken place.
After PRK surgery, patients are generally prescribed steroid drops for up to several months. The dosage is decreased by the doctor to suit the healing pattern of every patient. In patients undergoing PRK surgery, it can take several weeks for good vision to return, but when the vision has stabilised the results are permanent.
1. JOHN: John had a typical recovery after PRK surgery. The doctor prescribed him pain killers and three different kinds of eye drops - steroid eye drops to control healing, antibiotic eye drops to prevent infection and anti-inflammatory eye drops to diminish discomfort. The eye drops had to be applied regularly and the pain killers taken only if needed.
The doctor sent John home after the laser treatment. When the anaesthetic he was given wore off, John felt like he had a hair in his eye, which was sore but not bad enough as to require pain killers. John could eventually watch TV before going to sleep.
The morning after laser eye surgery, John’s eye was watery, tearing and slightly light sensitive. He felt an itching sensation in the treated eye for a couple of days afterwards. The protective contact lens was removed from John’s eye three days after laser eye surgery. John noticed a big improvement in his vision straight away, and was happy about the results. Still, the eye that had undergone treatment was still watery.
On the second day after PRK surgery, John woke up with no pain and his vision was very good. When he returned to work two days later, his computer screen looked blurry at the edges, but the effect faded within a few days. Slight fluctuations occurred in his vision for several weeks after the laser eye treatment. John felt as if there were a film over his eyes, especially toward the end of the day or at night.
One year after his surgery, John’s vision is sharp and the halos that affected his vision cleared up completely. The results of the surgery exceeded John’s expectations. The only lenses he wears now are non prescription sun glasses.
2. SOPHIE: 53-year-old Sophie had a quick and easy recovery after PRK laser eye surgery. When the anaesthetic she was given wore off, Sophie’s eyes felt gritty but she didn’t feel any real pain, and discomfort disappeared within 24 hours. Sophie’s vision went from 20/400 to 20/25 after laser eye surgery.
3. MICHAEL: 32-year-old Michael had a difficult recovery after PKR surgery. Before surgery Michael had 20/800 vision in both eyes. When he had his right eye treated, Michael experienced a pain that was intense but not unbearable, which lasted one or two days. The treated eye appeared puffy and red, and was quite light sensitive. Michael’s vision was blurry for a couple of weeks. Six weeks later, he had his left eye treated.
Although Michael experienced no pain during the procedure, a sharp burning sensation began to occur in his eye a few hours later. Therefore, his doctor decided to remove his protective contact lens and gave him anaesthetizing drops. After laser eye surgery Michael’s vision is now 20/20.
4. ANNA: Before surgery, 46-year-old Anna could not get out of bed without her glasses. In the first couple of days after laser eye surgery, Anna’s eyes were puffy and light sensitive, and she could not open them fully. The doctor prescribed her painkillers to take every eight hours. Four days after laser eye surgery, she even drove to work.
As the months wore on, Anna started to have difficulties when driving at night. Later, when it turned out that her right eye was under corrected, Anna admitted to not being diligent about using the eye drops she had been prescribed. After having her eye retreated with laser, Anna reached a vision of 20/25.
Recovery after LASIK eye surgery
The healing process is generally quicker in patients undergoing LASIK eye surgery because the top layer of the eye, the epithelium, does not get touched by the laser. Indeed, during LASIK surgery the eye surface gets lifted and folded back, so patients feel less discomfort and recover good vision more quickly.
The fact that the laser treatment is applied to tissue deep within the cornea shortens the recovery time for LASIK surgery patients, who don’t have to wait for the epithelium to grow back, and don’t need to wear the protective contact lens like in PRK. Patients are likely to see well straight after LASIK surgery, therefore they tend to have both eyes treated at once.
1. MARY: Mary’s recovery after LASIK eye surgery was quick and easy. The doctor prescribed her antibiotic and steroid eye drops, and Tylenol with codeine to take if necessary. After LASIK surgery, Mary went out for dinner. Her eyes were a bit watery, but she could see well – even if slightly blurry - and managed to read the menu by herself.
One hour or so later, Marie felt as if some dust had gone into her eyes, so she went back home and went straight to bed. When she woke up, her eyes were a bit dry, but her vision was sharp and neat. The discomfort she experienced disappeared within a week.
Mary saw her doctor again, then in the evening she went to the theatre, where she could see the stage clearly without glasses. She was happy with the results of the procedure. A couple of days after LASIK treatment, Mary was back to her normal life, and by the end of that first week her vision was good. Today, Mary has 20/25 vision.
2. JULIE: 45-year-old Julie was severely short sighted. Just after the LASIK procedure, Julie was amazed at how well she could now see things in the distance. After her anaesthetic wore off, Julie’s eyes were red, light sensitive and grainy. Blinking hurt slightly, for which she was given Tylenol with codeine. This made the light pain she felt after laser surgery disappear quickly.
3. GORDON: 48-year-old Gordon had severe short sightedness and astigmatism. Right after LASIK surgery, Gordon could see faces and read large print. That same evening, he felt light discomfort and was light sensitive. In the morning afterwards he could already see in the distance, but his vision was not sharp. Four months after LASIK surgery, Gordon does not need any glasses and is happy with the results.