Having considered and reconsidered the pros and cons of laser eye surgery over the last few years I finally decided to take the plunge after checking Optimax's website over the weekend and again seeing that they were offering bilateral LASIK for GBP999. The guy I talked to in the London office made me feel very uneasy. He was very unprofessional and short and I had to prompt him to ask me questions - very worrying. I kept having to ask him 'What details do you need from me?' as there was only silence from the other end of the line. I even had to ask if there was a confirmation number so when I would call back on Monday with my credit card it would be easier to find my bookings! This uneasiness made me browse further on the web. Using a different search engine I came across this website plus one other from a London Hospital offering an unbiased,uncommercial view on LASIK. The following points on LASIK were mentioned which I found very alarming : ** Weakening of the cornea by some 30-40% ** ** The flap cut into the cornea NEVER heals as corneal fibres do not re-grow and this flap can be lifted years later ** ** Patients are now being seen with bulging corneas, even with those who had low refractive errors beforehand and with the latest equipment having been used. Some of these have needed corneal transplants. ** ** 50% of patients have been shown to have lost a significant amount of night vision one year after surgery (Moorfields Hospital study 2001), even in people happy with the result. In Germany, this can legally stop people driving at night and it is possible that this regulation will be adopted in the rest of Europe ** ** The eye can become dry and sometimes may need drops EVERY FEW MINUTES (!) for months afterwards. Occasionally the corneal flap can melt, be displaced, or cells may grow under it which need to be removed by lifting and scraping the flap clean. Inflammation under the flap can also be a significant problem ** ** A small percentage of patients lose 2 or more lines of their best vision on a test chart ** ** Cutting the flap sometimes leads to perforation of the cornea and sometimes to a buttonhole flap ** On reading the above and then finding this website with the comments on Optimax - ok yes - good and bad, I personally at the moment will not take the risks involved with laser eye surgery, and especially not with the LASIK procedure. Tomorrow I'm calling Optimax to cancel my bookings. If I would be convinced at a later date that there are less risks involved I would certainly not have the procedure done via these people. They couldn't even convince me over the phone that they even bothered BEFORE the procedure let alone afterwards. SIGHT IS PRECIOUS and there is too little long-term experience of LASIK. I'm going to wait and SEE and go on holiday instead with the money!