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If you’re tired of wearing glasses or contact lenses and are considering LASIK surgery, you probably have a lot of questions. What is it exactly? Will it be covered by your insurance? How long does it take to recover? And, most importantly: will it work? Dr. Edwin Endo of Edwin Y. Endo, O.D. & Associates, Oahu’s source for superior-quality eye care and an annual recipient of the Honolulu Star Advertiser’s Best Optometrist Award, is here to explain LASIK surgery and help you make your decision.

LASIK stands for “laser in-situ keratomileusis,” and is a popular corrective surgery that is used to help people who are nearsighted, farsighted, or have astigmatism see better without the help of glasses or contact lenses. During the procedure, your eye doctor will reshape your cornea so light entering the eye focuses properly on the retina, thereby producing clearer vision.

As with all surgeries, there is some risk: not only are the changes made to your cornea irreversible, but the procedure has a small chance of negatively affecting your vision. However, these risks are extremely rare. LASIK has an excellent track record: 96% of people who undergo the surgery have a successful procedure and get the vision they wanted. And, your vision will be corrected almost immediately; you can expect to see more clearly the day of the procedure or the day after.

If you’re worried about pain, don’t be. At Edwin Y. Endo, OD & Associates, your doctor will use numbing drops during the procedure and patients who have undergone LASIK report that the pain associated with the surgery is very minimal. Additionally, there won’t be any need for bandages or stitches after you’re done. You’ll go home, recover for a day or two, and then have a checkup appointment with your eye doctor. While the effects of LASIK are permanent, some people do need to undergo LASIK enhancement, which is essentially a “touch-up” procedure to help them achieve the visual acuity they want.

It should be noted that LASIK does not prevent normal age-related loss of vision, which eye doctors call “presbyopia”. So even if you have LASIK, you might still need to use reading glasses as you get older. Additionally, since insurance companies still consider LASIK to be an elective procedure, it’s usually not covered by insurance. However, some insurance companies will offer their members who are undergoing LASIK a courtesy discount, so be sure to speak with your insurance company and see if there’s anything they’d be willing to do to lower the price.

Of course, if you have any further questions about LASIK surgery and optometry, you can always ask the award-winning team at Edwin Y. Endo, O.D. & Associates. Dr. Endo and his staff are dedicated to providing patients with state-of-the-art eye care. In addition to a wide variety of stylish and contemporary eyewear, they offer a complete range of optometry services, including LASIK surgery, treatments and evaluations for glaucoma, cataracts, allergies, red eye, and even preventative nutritional counseling.

When it comes to something as important as eye care, don’t trust anything less than the best. For more information or to schedule an appointment at Edwin Y. Endo, O.D. & Associates, visit their website or call (808) 487-5500 today.

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