InSight (Photorefractive keratectomy)

Though only tangentially related to photography I thought I would write a post about my experiences with PRK (Photorefractive keratectomy) Laser Eye Surgery to this point. Tomorrow will mark one week since I had the surgery, and at this point my vision is pretty good compared to wearing contacts, maybe 85% or so.

Last Monday afternoon I went to the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary for my scheduled PRK surgery, some numbing drops, some Valium and I was ready for the operating room. It is a little difficult to describe the specifics of the procedure itself, but the upshot is that the outer layer of your cornea (the epithelium) is peeled back and then a laser reshapes the surface of your cornea to correct your vision. For a more technical description, you can check out Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photorefractive_keratectomy.

For me it was something like the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey when you're swimming through a sea of rapidly changing color. There's a blinking green light in the center that goes in and out of focus, red laser points that defract, fragment and do all sorts of crazy things, and bright lights on the side.



After the laser finishes reshaping your cornea (your eye gets very dry and feel warm, there's also a faint burning smell), the epithelium is replaced and your eyes are bathed in a stream of artificial tears. Bandage contacts are put in place to protect your eyes, hard, transparent plastic shields are taped over your eyes and you're sent on your way. All in all I was only in the hospital for about 2 and a half hours.