Is The Cost Of Laser Eye Surgery Too High?

laser eye surgeons

Many people these days are very interested in the various types of corrective eye surgery that is available. One of the most popular types of procedures is Lasik vision surgery and it is popular because it is fast, usually taking only 15 to 20 minutes, the recovery is quick and the risk is very low. And, for many people the cost of Lasik eye surgery is minimal when they compare the benefit of not having to deal with losing (or breaking) their eyeglasses or the need to fuss with contact lenses.

In general, the cost will vary quite a bit depending on the exact type of corrective eye surgery that you need. The price of a Lasik procedure can also be affected by the type of facility you choose, whether the Lasik eye surgery center is affiliated with a hospital or not, the country where you reside and the region of the country where you live.

While it is easy enough to find slick advertisements that claim the cost of Lasik eye surgery can be as low as $500 per eye, this is generally not the full cost. After more careful study, people will find the true cost to be closer to $1,000 (per eye) and if a particular Lasik eye doctor is wanted for the procedure, then it could be upwards of $2,500 per corrected eye.

Unfortunately, aside from the many benefits of corrective eye surgery, the high cost simply puts it out of range for many people. This is especially true for those who have no type of insurance coverage to help pay for some of the expense. Even for those who do have optical insurance, many will find their coverage limited. Many insurance policies exclude this type of laser eye surgery altogether because they consider it to be optional and not necessary, since in most cases the vision can be improved with some type of corrective lenses.

However, there are many people who have sufficient resources and motivation that are not at all put off by the cost of eye surgery. Some people value the convenience of never having to wear glasses again. Others look forward to never having to deal with the fuss of changing and cleaning contact lenses. Still other’s are motivated by vanity and don’t want anyone to know that they had a vision problem that needed correction.

Regardless of the reasons why people seek out corrective eye surgery, there are many laser eye surgeons being kept happily in business by the demand of this procedure, regardless of the cost. Part of the reason why it has become such a popular practice is because a large segment of the population is comprised of the baby-boomer generation, ranging in age from 45 to 65, who are experiencing vision deterioration.

Regardless of the cost of Lasik eye surgery, this procedure is not an appropriate solution for all kinds of vision conditions that people would like to correct. The three main types of vision problems that Lasik laser eye surgery can correct are farsightedness, nearsightedness, and mild to moderate forms of astigmatism. Other types of vision difficulties would require other types of corrective eye surgery or might only be addressed with corrective contact lenses or eyeglasses.

Conductive Keratoplasty Eliminates Surgical Eye Intrusions

Lasik vision

As people age and their eyesight starts to decline, this often spurs many to find solutions that will help to improve their vision. Yet, when the solution of corrective eye surgery is suggested, many people have a big problem with a procedure that would “cut into” their delicate and sensitive eyes. But the technology of the day has provided a number of minimally invasive solutions to vision correction, including conductive keratoplasty (CK) which is even less invasive than laser eye surgery.

CK is a fairly new kind of laser eye surgery in practice today. It utilizes a mild heat that is generated from radio waves. These waves are used to reduce the size of the connective tissues. These tissues are a glue-like collagen, found in the periphery of the cornea and which can cause vision distortions.

The procedure of conductive keratoplasty actually re-shapes the structure of the cornea, making it more “steeped” in shape. This effects different visual conditions differently. People who have presbyopia will end up with better near-vision, and patients who have both presbyopia and farsightedness will enjoy better close and distance vision.

CK is not considered to be an appropriate treatment if you are nearsighted, and Lasik eye surgery would be recommended as a better procedure for people who are either nearsighted or have an astigmatism. CK is also currently being studied for its effectiveness with correcting astigmatisms, and while early indications are that it might be effective, it is not yet being widely used to correct that type of vision problem.

When CK was first introduced, there were some problems reported with the stability of the vision corrections and instances where the cornea actually reverted back to it’s original condition before the corrective eye surgery was done. However, in recent years there have been many improvements in laser eye surgery techniques utilized in CK, and clinical studies in more recent years have shown that the procedure is delivering more stable results consistently.

In April of 2002, the FDA of the United States approved conductive keratoplasty for use with patients over the age of 40 who had mild conditions of farsightedness. Later, in 2004, the FDA expanded its approval to include presbyopia, which is a very common condition that typically effects people as they reach middle age. Presbyopia is a natural side-effect of the aging process and it causes the lens of the eye to stiffen, making it more difficult to focus at different distances at the same time.

As a result of these improvements, CK has been gaining a much greater level of acceptance among laser eye surgeons and potential patients are becoming more interested in this procedure. Ultimately, it will still be some years before long-term data on the success or failure of CK will be available, in order to make a comprehensive comparison between this type of corrective eye surgery and other procedures, such as Lasik vision surgery.

While typical laser eye surgery, such as Lasik, involves cutting the surface layer of the eye tissue, conductive keratoplasty does not require any cutting and there is not any kind of instrument that is inserted in the eye. Due to this completely non-invasive approach, there is virtually no incidence of infections or other serious complications. The primary issue with CK is the length of time the effect with last, which is reported to be constantly improving.