During surgery

LASIK eye surgery normally takes less than 30 minutes to perform surgery on both eyes. You will be taken to the surgical suite and placed into a reclining chair or bed where you will lie on your back. The laser system consists of a microscope that is attached to a large machine and a computer screen.

After you are lying down and have been positioned underneath the laser, numbing eye drops will be placed in your eyes, and the area around your eyes will be cleaned thoroughly. After your surgical team, including your surgeons and assistants, have reviewed and confirmed all of your treatment information, a lid speculum will be placed to keep your eyelids open during the surgery. When it is time to create the LASIK flap, a suction device will be placed on your eye that will fixate it. During this period, you may feel pressure that may be somewhat uncomfortable, and your vision will go dark for a brief period of time. Your doctor will then use the microkeratome to create the corneal flap. After the flap has been created, the microkeratome will be removed, the suction will be off, and your vision will return, although it will likely remain blurry for the remainder of the procedure.

Your doctor will then carefully move the flap in order to expose the underlying corneal tissue. Any excess moisture on the tissue will be dried, and your underlying corneal thickness will be measured. The laser apparatus will then be positioned over your eye. Your doctor will ask you to stare directly at the light. It should be noted that the light you are staring at is not the laser that is being used for the surgery and may have different colors based on the specific laser being used for your treatment. This light is simply used so that your eye will remain in a fixed position.

The laser will be started by your doctor once your eye is in a satisfactory position. Do not be alarmed if you notice ticking sounds and new smells during this part of the procedure. The ticking sound is the sound of the laser pulses and the smell, which has been described by some as that of burning hair, is the evaporation of fluid from your cornea during laser ablation. The amount of laser treatment time varies among patients but is usually less than 60 seconds. After the appropriate amount of corneal tissue has been ablated by the laser, the corneal flap is gently placed back down into its original position.

To protect your eye, a shield will be placed around your eye. This is to prevent you from accidentally rubbing your eye or putting any pressure onto your eye. Your cornea is especially vulnerable in this early postoperative period, which is why it is very important to keep your eye protected. If you are having both eyes treated during the same surgery, the surgeon will reposition the laser over your other eye and the same process will be repeated for the second eye