FAQ’s

Q. Will the LASIK procedure hurt? Am I awake during surgery?
LASIK surgery is fast, relatively painless and provides excellent results when performed by experienced and skilled ophthalmologists at Northwest Eye Surgeons. During the procedure, you remain awake. Your eye is anesthetized, but you may feel momentary pressure around the eye. Your eye may be irritated, watery or blurry for a day or two after the procedure.

Q. Are there risks? Could I go blind?
Any surgical procedure involves risk. Our surgeons have performed thousands of LASIK procedures with complications of less than two per thousand. Millions of procedures have been performed worldwide since 1990, and while there have been reports of visual loss, these complications are extremely rare.

Q. What is “monovision?”
Monovision is the result of correcting the dominant eye for distance and setting the second eye for near vision. Talk with your primary eye care physician or your surgeon to see if this option is right for you.

Q. After LASIK, can I permanently do away with glasses or contact lenses?
Results are generally excellent. Most people can decrease dependence on corrective lenses; however, no surgery guarantees perfection. We recommend you discuss your expectations with your surgeon. In some cases - less than one in eight at Northwest Eye Surgeons - patients may require a retreatment to improve the original surgical outcome. Sometimes, glasses still may be required for optimum visual acuity. You will likely need reading glasses if you are over 45 years old and decide to have both eyes corrected for distance.

Q. How long does it take? When can I return to “normal?”
The surgery takes about 15-20 minutes. We recommend you rest at home for about 48 hours following surgery. You can return to work in two or three days and your other activities are minimally restricted for a week or two during recovery. You should discuss your specific activity restrictions with your surgeon.

Q. Do you guarantee your results?
We are committed to your satisfaction. Enhancements, if necessary, are covered for 18 months following your surgery as long as you have attended all the necessary post operative appointments (1 day, 3-4 day, 1 month and 3 month).

Q. Why should I choose Northwest Eye Surgeons for my LASIK surgery?
Northwest Eye Surgeons was founded in 1975 on the campus of Northwest Hospital and began performing refractive surgery in 1985. The practice was among the first to begin an active LASIK practice in 1996. There are now six offices, four surgery centers and more than 100 staff members in Western Washington.

Northwest Eye Surgeons is committed to providing you with excellent outcomes, using state-of-the-art medical technology and sophisticated, proven procedures. We believe personalized, traditional-style care should never be compromised and this is reflected in the extra steps we take to ensure each patient has a comfortable, successful experience at Northwest Eye Surgeons.

Our surgeons are highly skilled and experienced, nationally recognized and dedicated to our “patient first” philosophy of personalized care. In addition to Drs. Cameron and Talley-Rostov, who specialize in LASIK refractive surgery, the other surgeons at Northwest Eye Surgeons are involved in all areas of eye care.

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