How to Choose LASIK centre and LASIK Surgeon? Choosing a surgeon for LASIK or Relex SMILE laser vision correction is not as difficult as it can be for many other kinds of surgery. But a sub-optimal eye procedure outcome can affect your life almost as negatively as a sub-optimal heart operation outcome. That's why it is so important to choose the best surgeon available. Indicators of a quality surgeon can include international repute in quality care, laser vision correction (LASIK and Relex SMILE) specific ‘long term’ fellowship training at best hospitals, great credentials and willingness to work with a patient to resolve if at all any possible problems following a procedure. Finding a Good LASIK Surgeon and LASIK Centre Factors to consider when you check qualifications and abilities of a refractive surgeon and LASIK centre include: • Long Term LASIK Fellowship Training – Laser vision corrections are performed on seemingly normal eyes with only vision disorders correctable with glasses. Your eyes are special and only a well ‘trained’ eye surgeon should perform LASIK on them for safe and accurate outcomes in the first attempt itself. It is very important that your surgeon has spend at least 1 to 2 years in internationally reputed centers getting certified fellowship training for LASIK and Relex SMILE. Ask your doctor for his training credentials before you take a dive. • Board certification in ‘Cornea’ Fellowship. Ask if your surgeon is board certified beyond having a basic license to practice ophthalmology. LASIK is done on front portion of eye, known as ‘Cornea’. Only a certified corneal surgeon with credentials of LASIK fellowship will be able to deliver the best outcomes in most safe manner. They are also specialized to take care of post LASIK issues in most efficient way. • Scientific Credentials and repute – Your LASIK surgeon should be practicing evidence based medicine and being updated about all latest advancements of LASIK, Relex SMILE and beyond. A surgeon-with-credentials of international-level-research work in LASIK and publications in reputed journal are additional brownie points and would tops the list. Your surgeon should be good enough to be invited nationally and internationally to teach LASIK and Relex SMILE to fellow colleagues, which speaks a lot about his own expertise on the subject. • Experience – The centre and it’s surgeons should be a relatively good volume centre with experience of 10 to 15 years with good reputation. The surgeon should have good volume practice and deal with various power correction ranges to give you best outcomes. A surgeon with experience of at-least 10,000 LASIK surgeries is preferable. • Versatile Surgeon - In addition to the above concerns, you also need to consider the surgeon's versatility and competency in a variety of refractive procedures. LASIK isn't the only game in town, and it isn't the best procedure for every person. Choose a surgeon who is comfortable and experienced with several procedures — such as LASIK, Femto LASIK, Relex SMILE, PRK, EpiLASIK, LASEK and clear lens replacement (refractive lens exchange) — and the latest technology. If your doctor displays a thorough understanding of these different procedures, he or she can confidently choose the one that will be best to correct your particular vision problems • Technology – The technologies available are as important as the surgeon himself. Currently the centre should be equipped with both excimer laser as well as femtosecond laser to offer LASIK, FemtoLASIK (bladelss LASIK) and ReLex Smile laser vision corrections. The lasers should be latest, safest and most accurate to remove your power permanently. Currently Carl Zeiss VISUMAX lasers are considred the best world-wide and can also perform currently the best technique Bladeless, flapless, all laser SMILE technique. • Infrastructure – The ambience and the facility should be world class and hygienic for a comfortable and safe treatment. Don’t choose a shady place only as it may be cheap, REMEMBER it’s your eye, help them to see the best lifelong. • Team – The LASIK surgeon should have a team with trained and certified optometrist, certified engineers to take of lasers and courteous support staff. Chose a centre which has more than 2 to 3 reputed in-house LASIK surgeons, that may be a great help if second opinion is needed. • Own centre or travels to other center - It's also appropriate to ask if the surgeon performs procedures at his or her own surgical center. Surgeons in this category likely have considerable experience because they perform enough procedures to support a center of their own. If a surgeon needs to travel to an outside surgical center or share a laser, then this may be evidence that he or she performs fewer refractive surgery procedures. • Advertisements. Many refractive surgery centers advertise in newspapers and on radio, television and the Internet. Some ads are more informative than others. Some tout extremely good pricing. But while this can be a starting point, an ad or a procedure price should not be your only criterion when choosing a doctor. • Referrals. Ask for a referral from your regular eye care practitioner, whether an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. Tell him or her that you want the LASIK surgeon in your area with the best reputation in the profession. Also, reputable LASIK surgeons themselves can be great sources of referrals. If you know of a refractive surgeon who is well respected in another state, call his or her office and ask for recommendations regarding good surgeons in your area. What To Ask a Refractive Surgeon After you find a surgeon, make an appointment for a consultation. This is an important meeting. To take full advantage of it, write down as many relevant questions about LASIK and refractive surgery you can think of, and ask every single one during your visit. Some recommended questions are: • Where did you get trained? • Did you have a cornea and LASIK training for long term fellowship? • What are your credentials? • How many publications and presentations have you done nationally and internationally? • How many procedures have you done? • What is your complication rate, and how does this compare with national averages? • Do you perform procedures at your own center, or do you need to travel elsewhere? • Do you charge extra if an enhancement is required? You need to be confident that you have chosen the right person. So if you are not happy with answers to your questions, consult another surgeon.If you're considering a surgeon who doesn't perform a particular procedure you're interested in, ask for an explanation of why, beyond "I don't do that." The LASIK Surgeon's Office: "That Personal Touch" But to be fair, most good surgeons understandably have only a certain amount of time to spend with their patients when routine procedures are involved. So a good surgeon also recognizes that it's important to have friendly, competent staff available who also can assist with answering your questions and concerns. The initial impression you receive at the "front desk" may be an important indicator of how comfortable you will be made to feel as you go through the remaining steps of scheduling and undergoing a surgical procedure. Assessing the presence of that "personal touch" may be an important step to take before you commit to any eye surgeon. Author - Dr Vardhaman Kankariya Dr Vardhaman is an internationally reputed and India’s first dual fellowship trained LASIK and Relex SMILE surgeon based in Pune. He holds LIMCA Book of world Records for LASIK surgery and is only Indian eye surgeon trained by father of LASIK Prof Pallikaris himself. He loves travelling, playing piano and watching movies. LASIK and ReLEX SMILE at Asian Eye Hospital Dr Kankariya and Asian Eye Hospital (Sai Surya Eye Care PVT LTD) are considered as pioneers of LASIK in India. The LASIK experience at Asian Eye is painless, blades in comforting world class facility and best of the lot technology. With experience of vision correction procedures since 1985, it is currently one of most experienced centre in the country with over 1 lac procedures done successfully. The team has Dr Prakash Kankariya, one of the pioneers of LASIK in India and Dr Vardhaman Kankariya, the first Indian eye surgeon with dual long term fellowships in Europe and USA. Dr Vardhaman is also the first and only surgeon trained over 1 year by father of LASIK, professor Pallikaris himself in university of Crete. He is also the first surgeon to get fellowship training in bladeless and robotic precision Femtosecond technology assisted LASIK, Relex SMILE and femto Cataract Surgery at USA’s best Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. He is probably the most awarded LASIK surgeon in India (3 Asia Pacific Awards, 2 World Ophthalmology Conference awards and 3 All India Ophthalmological Society Awards) and most published scientific researcher with over 40 international publications. Asian Eye doctors are preferred LASIK providers for the country and get patients from abroad due to professional and friendly approach and expertise
