San Francisco has some of the top LASIK surgeons in the world. With the most modern LASIK equipment, residents of the San Francisco Bay Area can expect high quality LASIK treatment. There is still a difference in LASIK surgeon and LASIK centers so residents of San Francisco should consider there choices carefully. Despite the variety of choices in San Francisco, LASIK must still be approached with caution. Although complications are rare in LASIK eye surgery, they can occur and it is important that you select the best LASIK surgeon so that the equipment and skill of the LASIK surgeon give you the highest chance of a successful procedure.
What to look for in a LASIK surgery center
Experience – All LASIK surgeons are not equal. There are LASIK surgeons in San Francisco who have over 8 years of experience in laser vision correction and there are others who are new to the field. Don’t allow the surgeon to practice on your eyes. Make certain that the LASIK surgeon has performed over 10,000 procedures and is very experienced with the technology that is being used. In San Francisco, there are several LASIK surgeons who meet this qualification.
Technology – LASIK technology advances rapidly. Upgrades come nearly every year. Make certain that your LASIK surgeon has the newest upgrades available in the San Francisco market. Here are some upgrades that are available.
Wavefront LASIK (also called custom LASIK) – Every LASIK surgeon should have upgraded to wavefront LASIK. There is no excuse not to. While wavefront LASIK cannot be applied to every single case, it is certainly beneficial in the majority of cases. The best surgeons use wavefront LASIK in at least 75% of their treatments if not more. If your doctor in San Francisco does not have wavefront LASIK, that doctor is certainly behind the times. If the surgeon does not offer you wavefront LASIK ask why? Ask for them to perform a wavefront analysis on you even if you do not undergo wavefront LASIK. At least you will know they have the machine. Some eye doctors will suggest that it is not beneficial because they don’t have that machine available to them.
Iris Registration – This improvement in LASIK is nearly as valuable as wavefront custom LASIK. While it is not usable in every case, it is important. A patient’s eye can rotate 3-5 degrees or more when lying down. Iris registration accounts for this torsion and recalculates the treatment to adjust for the rotation. This can be extremely important in cases of high astigmatism and is important to correct application of any wavefront LASIK treatment. There are a few San Francisco LASIK centers that use Iris Registration.
Intralase (also called bladeless or bladefree LASIK) – One of the most complicated parts of LASIK is the making of a flap. Intralase can decrease this risk in many patients. It does not need to be used for every patients but a LASIK surgeon should have this available in case it will provide added safety for that patients. Ask your San Francisco LASIK surgeon if Intralase is available if needed.
Patient Care – The LASIK surgeon is the first most important part of any LASIK surgery. The staff is also important. Make certain that you feel comfortable with the LASIK surgery staff. The assist the surgeon and make certain that each patient receives the time that is required.
Results – It is difficult to confirm the success of a particular surgeon. In the San Francisco bay area there are several very successful surgeons. There are also surgeons that inflate their success rate. No LASIK surgeon is 100% successful. If you go to a San Francisco surgeon that tells you this they are clearly lying to you. While some doctors might achieve success in the 90% range. It is rare to achieve much higher than this.
San Francisco can provide you with excellent LASIK surgeons. I would advise visiting more than one so that you can compare the facilities.
Advertising – Don’t get too caught up in the advertising hype. Some doctors advertise low prices in order to bring in more customers. Remember that you get what you pay for. The best surgeons in San Francisco are not competing on price. They have a high volume of return patients and don’t need extremely high levels of advertising or very low prices to compete. Excessive advertising is a sign that a LASIK practice is getting a low return on patient referrals. This is a bad sign.