Ultralase

It is now just over 10 months since I had bi-lateral LASIK Hammersmith, Feb 15 02, by Vinod Gupta, see my previous reports. Was discharged by Ultralase after 6 months as I had a very good result and unlikely to change for the worse. I am still entitled to the 12 month aftercare though, and I’m sure if a problem arose after this time they would be most helpful.

I think its important to point out to prospective patients that at Ultralase the Optometrists do all of the pre and post operation examinations. I have not been examined by the same Optometrist twice in a row, if ever. Some are pleasant and helpful, others less so. You only meet the surgeon on the day of the operation and never again, unless you have re-treatment or complications ….. which may or may not be your perception (i.e. not a perfect result but surgeon thinks its within normal parameters..)

Have had many eye tests for work related reasons in the last 10 months. The worst I’ve had is 6/5 L and 6/6 R. I had very dry eyes that day and was dehydrated , and also because of in-car heating and air-conditioning at eye clinic. Airports are the worst for this.

Both before and since I have been tested at 6/4 both eyes. However as per original post the right eye is still generally worse in vision quality even though I can read 6/4 (last week had a test and could make out 7 letters out of 8 on the 6/4 line with right eye, all of them with left eye.
I’m past the dry eyes stage except occasionally, and then mainly upon waking and for the first hour awake.
Night driving is fine and didn’t have problems except in first post-operative week.
Looking at video clock in darkened room is ok – a little blurry, or poor contrast , its 12 FT AWAY, BUT DVD PLAYER has a clock with smaller but brighter digits and is easier to read. This naturally fluctuates so sometimes very clear and easy, sometimes have to concentrate a bit or rest eyes first. Exactly like contacts and glasses when I was wearing them. Clocks are easier to read looking directly rather than at angles, just like before, right?

As its now Christmas season with lots of lights I find much less glare than I used to with specs. Red lights have a small amount of halo, BUT none at all with white, green or other colours. After the first week, bright white light was the worst in quality. Now I can see ‘into’ the light and its clear, whereas with specs it used to be more of a blob.

All in all I am pleased and I think its important to get your results in perspective, to what you had before corrected and uncorrected, and in relation to their refractive procedures. There were no guarantees given out beforehand and Vie had better than expected result.

I would recommend it to anyone who is deemed medically suitable and cannot see better than 6/18 or 6/24 which is probably adequate for sports. If you can see well enough to drive(6/12) is it really worth the risk? You must ask yourself this.

But I would say do your research thoroughly, have a consultation with more than one clinic, make sure you surgeon has done several thousand procedures, and do not go to a clinic that does other things in addition to eye surgery, such as hair removal.

The surgeon should also have an extensive background in general eye care and is not merely a GP or mid-grade hospital doctor who is hoping to do to LASIK. Ask him how many corneal grafts he has done, which might throw him, but if he is a specialist he will have done this many times. Is your surgeon a member or fellow of the Royal college of surgeons or Ophthalmologists? If he is new to refractive surgery without an extensive Ophthalmic background Id say forget it and move on.

Ask as many questions as you feel comfortable with. Bring a list in with you and a pencil to make notes. Do not let the surgeon put you off. I asked Optimax a list of about 12 questions after a consultation there in writing, and they were reluctant to answer them finally stating that if I wasn’t sure or aware of the risks not to go ahead. How do you know the risks if they wont answer the questions?

Amazing since if they had answered my questions in the way Ultralase did I probably would have used them and am very glad I didn’t. By the way, they charged me £60 for a consultation fee, on their national booking line (which is only redeemed against an operation) but the sign outside their Bristol Clinic said FREE CONSULTATION. Keep the money Optimax.

Finally I would say you generally get what you pay for, and its worth spending nearly £2000+ to ensure a good surgeon, rather than £1500 to get an average one. If a clinic has many endorsements from the public as well as celebrities then it is a good indication of good surgeons (use the surgeons who operated on the celeb’s).

Nearly six months since my treatment. I had my eyes treated by Mr Gupta at Tottenham Court Road after have all the other stuff done at Chelmsford. Both eyes are a tad dry, particularly when I’m tired. Not a great problem though – preserve free drops are great!
Vision is great and I keep reminding myself that I used to wear glasses! I have kept my glasses and from time to time I put them on and wondered how the hell I wore them in the first place! Nope – no problems here! TC

I underwent LASIK treatment at the Ultralase clinic in Tottenham Court Road one week ago with excellent results. My prescription was -3.50 with a mild astigmatism in both eyes. From the initial consultation I have been very impressed with the service I received from Ultralase, all of the staff have been incredibly helpful and able to answer my questions. The treatment itself was performed by Pascal Annonier and his team who were all very professional. At worst the treatment could be described as a bit unpleasant, but certainly not painful, and for me well worth the results. The day after treatment my vision was 20/20 in my right eye and slightly better in my left eye although a bit hazy, this cleared after a day or so. A week later my vision remains better than 20/20 and very clear with no night vision problems. The only side effect I have had is occasional stinging as my eyes settle, partly due to the preservative in the antibiotic drops. I am very satisfied with the treatment I received and thrilled with the results.

It’s been two years since having LASIK at Ultralase in Leeds and my sight is still as clear as ever. It’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Some of my friends have also had their eyes done there, and they’ve all got 20/20 vision too. I can’t recommend Ultralase highly enough.

Nearly 12 months since I had LASIK for -4.25,-3.75 with astigmatism. I have excellent vision in L eye and a -.25 in R eye which is noticeable when tired etc. but not a big problem. I still use preservative-free drops for dryness which can markedly affect vision. No night vision problems at all. I’m glad I had it done. However, being a nurse, I do think that those considering it should make a rational decision to proceed based on statistics / facts and not be swayed by evangelical urges to “just do it”.