Am I a good candidate?

The best way for you to determine your suitability is with a thorough eye health examination at Queensland Laser Vision. Appropriate candidates must be at least 18 years old, have good general eye health and have stable vision for at least 12 months. Laser vision correction can treat a very broad range of short sightedness, long sightedness and astigmatism.

During your initial assessment (which takes approx 1 hour) your consultant will confirm if you are a good candidate, explain the procedure and answer all questions you may have so that you are able to make an informed decision.

There are a number of factors that might make you a good or poor candidate for LASIK. These include: your prescription, the health of your eyes, the thickness of your corneas, the size of your pupils, and health and integrity of your tear film, and most importantly the specific lifestyle need you wish to accomplish through the elimination of, or decreasing your dependence on, glasses or contacts.

The consultant will also explain what results are reasonable to expect by performing customised measurements of your eyes and conducting a full eye health examination. In fact, many people choose Queensland Laser Vision based upon our reputation for providing excellence in patient care matched by state of the art technology equalled to the world’s best.

Can I claim my LASIK procedure against my health fund?

The LASIK procedure is not covered by Medicare or most private health funds. To our knowledge, only Defence Health, HBA Ultimate Cover, AHM and Queensland Teachers contribute towards the procedure.

Can I claim my LASIK procedure on my tax return?

Yes you can. Please see below an extract from the Australian tax office website.

Net medical expenses tax offset Net medical expenses are the medical expenses you have paid less any refunds you got, or could get, from Medicare or a private health insurer.

You can claim a tax offset of 20% – 20 cents in the dollar – of your net medical expenses over $1,500. There is no upper limit on the amount you can claim.

You can only claim medical expenses for those of your dependants who were Australian residents for tax purposes…

Claimable medical expenses You can claim expenses relating to an illness or operation paid to legally qualified doctors, nurses or chemists and public or private hospitals. Medical expenses which qualify for the tax offset also include… laser eye surgery.

Conditions apply please check with ATO for full details.

How much is the procedure?

The current price for LASIK, EPILASIK and PRK is $2,600 per eye.

This price includes:

Treatment using the safest and most advanced equipment

Post-operative consultations

Enhancement procedures if required at a later date

After surgery care pack consisting of medicinal and lubricating eye drops, clear eye shields and full post-operative instructions and information

Access to 24-hour contact numbers for peace of mind

How soon am I able to drive after my procedure?

We suggest that you do not drive for at least 24 hours following the procedure. It is advised that your surgeon firstly reviews your eyes day 1 post-operatively.

You may drive when you feel confident that your vision and comfort allows you to drive in a safe and competent manner.

What are the risks?

There are risks associated with the laser vision correction procedure. However, the chance of having a vision reducing complication has been documented in a number of clinical studies to be minimal.

Some potential complications include conditions such as dryness, complication in making the surgical flap, night glare, under or over-correction, and loss of best-corrected vision.

At Queensland Laser Vision your consultant will discuss these and other risks of the surgery on the day of your initial assessment.

Thorough pre operative screening ensures that we offer you suitability only when it is medically advisable.

As well, diligent post-operative care helps to identify and address any potential healing complications.

What is customised LASIK?

A custom treatment is a wavefront-guided procedure. However, every procedure we perform is a ‘customised’ procedure as your examination is a highly detailed, personalised evaluation.

We carefully assess your eyes with our wavefront technology, which is the NIDEK OPD Scan, and then adjust and customise your treatment depending on your pupil size, refraction, corneal topography and all other test results.

The ability to adjust the NIDEK EC-5000 CXII Excimer Laser’s optical zone size and transition zone allows for a truly customised treatment – the adjustability of the laser is one of the most important factors in providing a customised treatment for each individual patient.

What is LASIK?

For a large majority of patients, Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) is the best way to achieve natural vision.

LASIK was first performed in 1989 by an ophthalmologist in Greece and was introduced in Australia in 1995. Queensland Laser Vision (formerly The Excimer Laser Vision Centre) was the first established Centre in QLD founded in 1992. Queensland Laser Vision also pioneered the LASIK procedure in 1995.

The LASIK procedure commences by placing drops on the eye to numb the surface. The surgeon utilises a precise, specialised instrument, (Amadeus Microkeratome) to create a very fine layer through the surface of the cornea. This layer forms a “flap” of clear tissue on the central area of the front surface of the eye.

Once the flap is created the surgeon gently removes the microkeratome and then gently folds the flap back, exposing the underlying corneal tissue. The Excimer laser is then utilised to alter the curvature of the cornea to achieve the desired optical correction for your eyes. After the correction of shortsightedness, long-sightedness and/or astigmatism has been delivered the flap is then gently laid back to original position over the treated corneal tissue.

Following the procedure you will be provided with a take home eye drop pack. A protective eye shield is supplied to protect the eye from accidental bumping or rubbing. During the first 24-48 hours, you may experience a mild gritty sensation however you will be provided with lubricating, antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops to assist during this time.

What will my recovery be like and how long do I have to take off work?

Most patients usually see quite well the day following their procedure and may be able to continue with activities of daily living however patients with higher prescriptions may recover more slowly.

Although the speed of visual recovery depends on personal healing patterns, most patients tend to notice dramatic visual results within the first few days following the procedure.

Most patients are back to work fulltime after a full working day taken to recover from the procedure. An additional day or two is rarely required before returning to work (in the case of PRK at least a week off work should be suitable).

If it is possible, we suggest that you relax for a couple of days following your procedure.

Why do you use a blade?

We use the Amadeus II keratome the world's best microkeratome".

It is a highly advanced, completely computer controlled, tried and tested piece of equipment. Our surgeons have assessed the 'bladeless' Intralase system and see no benefit to the patient or surgeon at the present time. The Intralase procedure takes longer to perform, recovery is longer, the technique is no more accurate but is significantly more expensive.

We recommend you visit www.intralase.com for more information

Will I need reading glasses after the treatment?

Generally patients under the age of 40 years of age tend to read quite well following the procedure however some patients over the age of 40 may need assistance when reading up-close fine print.

In our early to mid-forty’s there is a natural weakening of the focusing muscles, which is often referred to as presbyopia.

The LASIK procedure does not correct or prevent presbyopia occurring however an option that may be suitable to you is called Monovision.

Will the procedure hurt?

Some patients find the procedure to be slightly uncomfortable. One good way to learn more about how it might feel is to talk to someone who has had the procedure, such as a friend, relative or a staff member at Queensland Laser Vision .

For most patients, the feeling of anxiety and fear of the unknown is worse than the actual procedure. Anaesthetic drops are used to numb the eye just before surgery commences and you will also be given a mild sedative.

After the procedure, you may experience a ‘gritty-like’ sensation in your eyes however it is suggested that you rest with your eyes closed for 4-6 hours and administer lubricating drops every hour for the first 24 hours, while awake.