Myopia (Lasik) Surgery in Costa Rica

LASIK Surgery Price Adequate Candidates The Surgery Procedure Post-Op After Surgery Health Issues

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is a vision problem experienced by up to about one-third of the population. Nearsighted people have difficulty when it comes to reading highway signs and seeing other objects at a distance, but can see for up-close tasks such as reading.

Nearsightedness happens when the eyeball is slightly longer than usual from front to back. This causes light rays to focus at a point in front of the retina, rather than directly on its surface. This condition can run in families and usually appears during childhood. This vision problem may stabilize at a certain point, although sometimes it worsens with age. Myopia may be corrected with glasses, contact lenses or refractive surgery.

Myopia (Lasik) Surgery Prices

Please check here for price estimates. Price changes and updates are not shown on the website immediately. If you wish to obtain more information regarding the current costs of a particular procedure, please contact us .

Adequate Candidates

When it comes to laser refractive surgery, people who suffer from the following make poor candidates for the procedure:

• A refraction out of the recommended correction range.
• Active inflammation of the external eye (iritis).
• Cataracts or retinal holes or tears.
• Dry eye
• Chronic punctate keratitis, meibomitis and blepharitis.

The Procedure

Before your LASIK procedure can start, anesthetic drops will be placed in each of your eyes to numb them. These drops help to ease any discomfort during the procedure.

You’ll be asked to lie down on a table which has the laser equipment mounted above it. Your ophthalmologist will ask you to look up at a small blinking light. (try to keep looking directly at this light). During the procedure, a special instrument holds your eye open as your surgeon performs the operation. Your other eye (the one not being treated at that moment) is protected by a shield.

Next, your doctor will use a special tool called a microkeratome; this is used to make a small incision in the cornea’s outer layer and to create a small corneal flap. When this “hinged” flap is pulled back, a small area of your cornea is exposed. The excimer laser beam is applied to this exposed corneal area.

While you continue to watch the blinking light, your surgeon will apply very small and very rapid (billionths of a second) “bursts” of the excimer laser to your cornea to reshape it. This way, areas that are too flat may be made steeper or more rounded; areas that are too curved may be smoothed out. This reshaping – the core of the LASIK experience – normally takes about one minute.

When the corneal reshaping is finished, your doctor lays the corneal flap back into place, where it acts as a sort of natural bandage. The cornea quickly heals by itself with no need for stitches. After your doctor confirms that everything is in order (usually just an hour or two after you arrive for your procedure), you will be ready to do home.

Post-Op -After Surgery

After this surgery, the majority of patients experience improved vision immediately. Even so, you must keep in mind that complete LASIK surgery recovery can take up to six months as vision takes some time to stabilize following the procedure.

Just after a LASIK surgery, you may be required to wear a protective shield over your eyes for the first night or two following the treatment. Your doctor may also instruct you to take antibiotic, anti-inflammatory or moistening eye drops; also you may need to wear dark eyeglasses if you experience sensitivity to bright lights.

Health Issues

As with any type of surgery, complications are unusual, but they sometimes do happen. However, they are usually minor and can be reduced by precisely following your doctor’s directions before and after the procedure. The following are some of the complications related to a refractive laser surgery:

• Clouding of the cornea
• Infection of the cornea, which is usually treated with antibiotic eye drops
• Puncture of the cornea or eyeball
• Over-correction(long-sightedness) or under-correction (under-treated myopia)
• Glare around bright lights
• Increased pressure in the eye (glaucoma)
• Retinal detachment

You must also keep in mind that this procedure does not correct the normal ageing process of the eyes and some people who are treated for shortsightedness still need glasses after the age of 40.