Optical Express

I had lasek surgery in early 2005 and can recommend it, i just wish i had done it earlier. The procedure itself is painless and the staff put you at ease, and are very professional. I was in some discomfort for about 1 week post op but it was definately worth it.

I had lasek done a week ago in Manchester. It was lasek on the advice on the surgeon because I had a fairly simple prescription and it sounds slightly less scary! It has all gone very well. My sight is already excellent, every bit as good as it was with lenses. 5 stars for the surgeon (Mr Aziz) and the opthalmologist. One star is lost because the other staff in Manchester were variable - some good, some didn't return calls, etc, and one was downright objectionable. The other star is lost due to the price advertising. They advertise "from £395", but my surgeon wouldn't normally treat anyone with a small enough prescription to qualify for this price! £595 per eye is a competitive price, but I don't like misleading advertising.

Actual procedure painless however experienced severe pain for about 3 hours after procedure. Have been experiencing headaches for the past week but these are diminishing. Pleased with result as far as vision is concerned. Still getting used to using glasses for reading.

Underwent Lasek surgery on 9/8/05 in the Belfast Clinic. My surgeon was Dr Azziz who made me feel very relaxed and answered all my questions. I had to take the lasek surgery option as I had thin corneas and large pupils. Can I re-enforce to anyone who has to get lasek you will need a whole week to recover. 2 days of virtually no vision and a further 2 days of "scrathy eyes". Once the contact lens bandages were removed on day 5 I must admit I had hoped to have 100% vision but it took another few days to have what I would call anywhere near "normal" vision. Its been 2 months now and I'm so glad I had the operation done - just be aware its not as quick as option as Lasik - but every bit as good. Thanks to everyone in the Belfast store for all their help and advice.

Had Lasik at Southampton Optical Express. I am pleased with the results after 7 weeks. Still a few halos at night time. I had very short sightedness and a astigmatism which appears to have been almost perfectly corrected. Day of surgery was painless. Would recommend to anyone considering treatment.

Maria Qim and Pretti my laser eye consultant at Nottingham Branch , were very good from start to finish. They explained things very well from my first consultation to my final consultation.

I Had Lasek on Thursday 24th, everything went great but at the moment right eye very sore not sleeping with it I can see when I can open it think its the protective lenses, can anyone else let me know if they have had same experience, im due back tomorrow hopefully all will be ok. thanks will post another one when been back tomorrow

Has Lasek done 6 days ago at Birmingham branch. Mr George recommended Lasek as I had very thin corneas. Had heard stories of pain following procedure so was very nervous. However, no pain just grittiness and smarting of the eyes for 3 days. Found the smarting got worse after having had the bandage lenses out and could not bear light for about 12 hours after but now am fine. Vision is still a little blurry but fantastic improvement (-4.75 and -5.75 pre op). I still have a little discomfort in one eye - it feels like I have something in it - but on the whole am very pleased. Vision seems to be improving and I realise it is a slower process with Lasek so am hoping for fantastic vision in a few months. I would not hesitate in recommending Lasek, it is fantastic to wake and not fumble for my glasses after 35 years!! The only little grumble I have about Birmingham branch is the waiting. I was booked in for treatment at 2.30pm and was still waiting at 5.10pm! This makes the anticipation worse and by the time I got into the treatment room I was a nervous wreck. This waiting is not uncommon as three family members have had the same experience. My advice is to take a book to read and try tostay calm as the procedure is so simple and pain free, the anticipation and waiting is the worst part of the treatment but well worth it.

All in all I was impressed by the professionalism of the team and their ability to explain things in a clear and precise manner. Whilst there have been minor problems obtaining aftercare appointments (due to the lack of a qualified individual at Norwich) there have been no major issues. I would recommend this to anyone who, like me, could not get on with contacts. The minor discomfort in first few hours is a small price to pay.

Overall I had a very good experience at my local Optical Express in Milton Keynes. I've just got home from my 3 month check up and I am very pleased with the results. I was quite disappointed at the reception when I first went in to find out about having laser correction. I popped in on my lunch hour to make an appointment for a chat about the procedure. I hadn't even decided if I wanted to have it done but the girl who I spoke to insisted that I had to have different eyedrops when I attended the appointment which would prevent me from driving! I was very disappointed that they weren't even prepared to talk to me without gaining my consent to take part in a medical procedure. The girl wasn't really very helpful and seemed oblivious to the fact that I didn't have time to go through the ins and outs right then and there (that's what I wanted an appointment for after all). That very nearly put me off but I'm glad it didn't. I will point out that she worked in the shop floor area rather than the laser suite though. The initial appointment was simple enough but I do feel that it should have been possible to have a half-way appointment where you can be told about the surgery before having to consent to the examination which determines if laser correction is appropriate. Everything was explained clearly and simply but I didn't feel patronised. They gave me as much information and in as much detail as I wanted. I had to pay double the advertised starting price due to my prescription of, I think, -5.75. I also have slightly larger pupils than average so I had to be prepared to live with glare after correction, especially at night. I was told that I could go back to work the day after the procedure so I booked in for the 19th November. I guessed (although I wasn't told) that I'd be on a production line. The wait was long and boring so I recommend taking a newspaper and a sandwich. The laser suite is run very well. Everyone is pleasant and helpful. I did get butterflies of excitement when it was my turn but never felt afraid. The treatment room seemed to be run very efficiently. Everyone in the room was friendly and really helped to calm my nerves. The actual procedure was fascinating. I could see some things but my vision was distorted most of the time so all I could see were vague shapes, nothing alarming. The procedure was uncomfortable but not painful - a bit like wearing shoes that are 2 sizes too small. I got the impression that they went to great lengths to secure my eyeball before doing anything else. I'd heard tales of being able to smell burnt hair but I didn't smell anything. When I sat up they asked me to read the clock on the wall. I will never forget the emotion of being able read a wall clock unaided for the first time in my life. It's the little things like that which make it all worthwhile. Immediately after the treatment I went into another room where I was given a little bag of aftercare stuff and instructions for the next few days. That took about 5 minutes and by the end of it I felt the anaesthetic drops wearing off. By the time my partner had got me to the car about 50 feet from the clinic I just wanted to close my eyes which were streaming like I had raw onion in them. Got home and went straight to bed. The feeling after surgery is like having sand in your eyes. Pain is a very personal thing but I would say it was unpleasant rather than painful. I just laid in my bed with the curtains closed feeling sorry for myself for next 7 hours or so. You really do need someone to be with you during this time. My goodie bag from the clinic had special goggles to stop me from touching my eyes. I had to wear these during sleep for some time to come. After those first hours I noticed a significant improvement in how I felt. The grittiness was gone and I just felt like I'd left contact lenses in for too long or been in a really smokey room. I was able to open my eyes and get about the house on my own. I had 3 different types of eye drops to take at different times (antibiotic, anti-inflammatory and saline). These did help but it's worth having a box of paracetamol handy too. I happened to have a day off work the next day but there was no way I could have returned to work at that point. My eyes were still running and I felt generally glum. Good job I didn't go back to work the next day because I had to attend a follow-up appointment. I was very much cheered up with the news that my vision was already better than 20-20. I did go back to work the day after the follow up and although my eyes felt dry I coped fine. From a cosmetic point of view my eyes were still a little bloodshot and there was a bruise in the white of one eyeball. That wasn't really visible unless I looked in a certain direction. Unless you're particularly concerned about appearance it's nothing to be afraid of. (If you decide to have the procedure I thoroughly recommend the following. When you return to work, stagger in wearing dark glasses and explain there were a few side effects. Remove your dark glasses to reveal a pair of googly-eyes-on-springs glasses which can be purchased at joke shops. Alternatively, learn a 'remote-viewing' magic trick to perform. You'll be amazed how many people believe that laser surgery really can give you special powers.) A few days later I found that my eyes were stinging when I applied drops and I was getting through loads of the 'fake tears' I was provided with in my goody bag. At my one week routine check up I was told that I'd developed an allergy to the preservatives in the bottled drops and was given individual vials of viscous tears to use instead. These were really soothing and the clinic supplied me with as many as I needed. Apart from that minor hiccup everything was fine. I went for a one month routine check up which was simple because everything was ok. I only needed to use the viscous drops very occassionally. I don't use them at all now. After three months I find that my vision isn't quite as good as it was with my very best lenses. I do experience a slight glare effect but that has improved over the past 3 months. Also, I had fantastic near vision before. I was often called upon to read hallmarks or thread needles. This is now compromised but I don't really care. The novelty of threading needles wears thin. The experience of not needing the 'crutch' of spectacles just gets better. Almost every day I find a new benefit to having my vision corrected. My only regret is that I didn't have it done 10 years ago.