Thank you Dr. Rickman!!!

FOXNews.com - Patients Harmed by Lasik Surgery Alternate Between Fury, Despair at FDA Hearing :

"Too many Americans have been harmed by this procedure and it's about time this message was heard,' said David Shell, who had Lasik in 1998 and says he has 'not experienced a moment of crisp, good quality vision since.'"

When I was a teenager the first generation of 'lasix' type surgeries came into being ... it involved making little slices around the cornea of the eye and shaving off a bit of the natural dome over the pupil.
I was soooooo excited that for once since I was 2 yrs old I would be able to see without the aid of glasses (yes I had them that young and was not a candidate for contacts at the time).
Dr. Rickman ... the same eye dr I had since the beginning ... didn't pull any punches. He said that not only was I not a candidate for it because of the severity of my myopia but also because the procedure was too dangerous -- it would either cure me or blind me....he didn't have high hopes and would not, not 'could not', not 'should not', but a straight foward 'would not', recommend to the insurance company or to any dr. that I get the surgery.

When the current round of Lasix came into practice in college (despite the story saying it has only been around 20 years, I'm positive is has been longer than that), he took the same stance -- instead he said, he wanted me to use the new soft contact lenses (the colored ones just came into being...but unfortunately they didn't get powerful enough for me, but the regular ones did) .... he wanted me to go that route first and to let the medical profession perfect the proceedure before I even thought of it.

Then Rickman retired (I missed him) but his partner, Dr. Nathanson is a great dr! Like him a lot! He said that the technology had finally caught up and he could do lasix on me~ yea! Until he took the measurements of my eye ... poo. I am about 2mm too long in the eye to be a good candidate -- even after my cataract surgery.

But the one thing he did tell us - since hubby is looking at getting it - is that if you are over 40 it is pretty much a waste of money because you will be needing bifocals soon and lasix does NOTHING for that.

I see ads all the time, and hear them on the radio, for these low-cost, payments available lasix surgery centers. They send shivers down my spine.

"....About 7.6 million Americans have undergone some form of laser vision correction, including the $2,000-per-eye (euro1,280) Lasik. Lasik is quick and, if no problems occur, painless: Doctors cut a flap in the cornea — the clear covering of the eye— aim a laser underneath it and zap to reshape the cornea for sharper sight.
Doctors advise against Lasik for one in four people who seek the surgery, said Dr. Kerry Solomon of the Medical University of South Carolina, who led a review of Lasik's safety for the ASCRS. Their pupils may be too large or corneas too thin or they may have some other condition that can increase the risk of a poor outcome...."

At $2000 an eye you think they are turning down 1:4 people??? HELL NO! Well, maybe at some of the more reputable eye clinics -- but most of those cheap places out there are little better than puppy-mills ... just seeing the $$$$$ signs!!

I have no idea what the FDA was thinking when they set it up so that any one with a liscense could do this sort of thing. its kind of like 'permanent eyeliner' -- you wouldn't let just anyone off the streets near your eye with a needle or laser ... I wouldn't let just any dr near your eyes either.

Establish a long term relationship with them (at least two years, thank you). Check out how other patients feel about it. Check out their medical creditials to see if there have been any complaints. Ask questions.

hey its like Reagan said ... "Trust but Varify"!!!