The Laser Treatment

Saturday, 28 April 2007
By Kholood F. Al-Rhamah

The Saudi Gazette

Amjad Kassim, a 33-year-old plumber, is fed up with his glasses.
He has less than perfect vision, and trouble driving at night. "I was driving my car one night on the highway, and I lost my glasses and I couldn't find them or look for them in the dark," said Kassim.

Then one day Kassim saw a TV commercial advertising laser eye surgery. It promised quick results, no pain, and 20/20 vision. So he went to Magrabi Eye and Ear Hospital in Jeddah, and booked a surgery for the following day.

With the world advancing and modern technology achieving what we thought impossible just five or ten years ago, laser eye surgery has become an increasingly popular option for those with vision problems.

Kassim's doctor, cornea and refractive-surgery specialist Dr. Ayman Nasr Hashem, said that the advances in technology have made this surgery life-lasting and reliable. "The laser is permanent and limitless," said Dr. Hashem.

Before the surgery, Dr. Hashem checked the condition of Kassim's eyes, and advised him to come in the next day for the operation.

In the waiting room before the surgery, Kassim was dressed in a sterilized robe and prepped for the surgery. Before the surgery, he was given a local surface anesthetic in the form of eye drops.
Kassim's operation took about 20 minutes.

The surgery involved the reconstruction or sculpturing of the frontal surface of Kassim's cornea in a way that fixes the way the eye receives light.

The doctor lifted a thin slice from his cornea, using a highly precise laser that determines the cornea's shape, and sculpted the cornea's surface in a way that optimizes sight.

After the surgery, Kassim talked about what he felt. "At the beginning I was scared and my eyes started to drop tears, but afterwards things became better, except the redness in my eyes because of the blood. Now I feel good, happy and comfortable."

Of course, there are always risks in these surgeries. But Dr. Hashem seemed confident.
"Other kinds of laser surgeries, the old ones, were less reliable than now. Of course, the patient could experience another problem but not the one that has been resolved and fixed in the surgery," he said.

"The operation itself is not surgically difficult, so the patient must try as much as possible to be calm and relaxed," he added.

"Being cooperative during the 5 to 10 minutes of the operation will make it easier and quicker. The patient's role during the operation is to focus on a point of light in front of them and follow it."

After half an hour, Dr. Hashem went to check on Kassim's condition and the stability of the sliced flap of the eye. If the patient passes the check, he or she is allowed to leave the hospital in the company of one of her or his relatives and should come back the next day for a follow-up check.

Kassim passed and was released.

After the patient leaves the operating room, the eyes don't need to remain closed, but it is recommended not to expose them directly to the sun.

"We advise the patient to wear sunglasses while leaving the hospital, because generally the eyes are sensitive to the light," said Dr. Hashem.

"If the patient does not have sunglasses, that's fine, just keep your eyes closed and relaxed."
According to the doctor, before laser eye surgery, a patient should stop wearing contact lenses for at least a week, wear comfortable clothes on the day of surgery, and female patients should remove any makeup.

A patient must also bring a relative to accompany them home after the operation is done.
Dr. Hashem also said patients should not wash their faces with water, nor rub their eyes, because of possible itching. They also shouldn't expose their eyes to dusty or moist weather, such as on the Corniche, for two days after the operation.

Patients also have a regimen of medicine to take according to doctor's instructions, and must keep with the follow-up visits offered by the hospital - a day after the operation, then a week, a month, three months, six months and one year.

This kind of preventative healthcare allows Dr. Hashem to address problems before they start.
Like any other operation, laser eye surgery has side effects. For instance, sometimes the patient experiences burning, tears, itching or other strange feelings in the eyes for 5 or 6 hours.

Most patients experience dryness in the eyes for about a month or two, which can be controlled with moisturizing eye drops. And then there is the risk of infection, but it's very small. There are certain groups of patients that cannot undergo this operation for various reasons.

If the weakness in the eyesight is not due to the way the eye processes light, then laser surgery is not the solution.

And despite the growing popularity of laser eye surgery, there are still those who have understandable doubts about it. For people like Kassim, it's a chance to enjoy a life without the need for glasses.