1 WEEK BEFORE:
take your soft lenses out (note: a hard contactlens must be removed 2 weeks before surgery)
THE DAY BEFORE:
Get all the necessary medication: Valium 5 mg (sedative), / Trafloxal eyedrops (antibiotics), FML eyedrops (inflammatory), Aculare eyedrops (inhibits pain) and Dafalgan codeïne and Valtran oral solution (against the pain). You also have to arange a driver that can bring you tomorrow.
DAY OF THE SURGERY
2H before: no more eating (you can drink) /remove mascara and make-up
1H before: 1 tablet Valium 5 mg (this will make you calm and a little bit muzzy: don't drive the car yourself !!)
TAKE WITH YOU TO THE CENTER:
Unopened Aculare/ FML and Trafloxal // the procedure takes +- 30 min // however there may be delays there are also other patients that must be treated
DURING THE SURGERY
A special deviece will hold your eyelids open, so you can't blink unexpected.
You will have to look to a red light.
You will first see a green light.
It is very important that you keep looking into the red light, when the doctor asks you to do that.
First the doctor will scrub away the superficial layer of the cornea (this takes a couple of minutes).
Then the laser is activated: you will hear a crackling noise, usually accompanied by a strange burning smell.
This is due to the evaporation of a portion of your cornea, this is normal.
Immediately thereafter they put on a contactlens, to fight the pain.
AFTER SURGERY
You will have to come every day tto the ophthalmologist till the injury is healed.
Afterwards you will have to come some times to evaluated the healing (and guide). 6 months after surgery the last control is planned.
Meanwhile you will have to use some medication and leave or do some things.
In the treatment you can distinguish 2 periods: the healingphase of the superficial injury (1°week) and the healingphase of the applied deformation (6 months):
A. INJURY PHASE
Medication: Trafloxal (disinfection/ FML (inflammatory) and Aculare eyedrops (analgesic) every 3H. Possibly your ophtalmologist will choose a bandage instead of a contactlens. Than you don't have to apply medication yourself. Variable medication: your eye will feel moderately to very painful. Variable analgesia is very important:
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Attitude:
Don't look around much and keep both eyes closed. Try to sleep as much as possible. When you can't sleep because of the pain you may take a tablet valium. Listen to some music when you are awaka.
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Oral medication:
Dafalgan when the pain is moderate / when the pain is severe: Valtran drops (= 10 to 15 drops 3 a 4X/day in a glas fo water). Eat regular so the medication can't affect your stomach.
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medication in eyedrops:
When you experience a lot of pain you can also use tetracaine, out of small bottles that you got after surgery. Reduce these to a minimum!
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Other directions during the first days:
That your eyes weep is normal. Tears are good disinfection. Do not rub your eyes, you can rub your lens out and you can cause a contamination! It is normal that you can't keep your eyes open easily. Wear sunglasses, your view will only get bette when the eye is cured ( this takes about 1 week)
B. HEALING PHASE
When the injury is cured, you still have to use the eyedrops +- 5 months. Usually this consists of the following scheme : FML eyedrops (inflammatory)
4X/d during 1° month
3X/d during 2° month
2X/d during 3° month
1X/d during 4° month
1X/2d during 5° month
Depending of the evolution of your vision the scheme can be changed, or the doctor can decide that you need stronger or lighter drops.
In the beginning you will have difficulties to read because you are overcorrected.
This will disappears the first 3 months.
After 1 - 2 months (average) the other eye is operated
After 6 months: the result is regarded as final
NOTE : your doctor is available for problems (visionchangesor severe pain // The first 2 days the pain can be severe, this is normal!!!