Advanced Vision Care

Having worn semi-permeable contact lenses for 40 years ….and got used to near 20/20 vision I was devastated to learn that these types of lenses finally started to show signs of extended wear. My trusted and very experienced optician therefore recommended a change to a different type…..and we tried many different types. Unfortunately, the various limitations associated with these meant that the distant vision in my case suffered significantly. Reading was even more difficult and found that it was impossible to read a map or mobile phone without first putting on reading glasses – quite frankly it made me depressed.
For years I have been wondering about laser correction but was sceptical who to trust, really I needed a professional recommendation….ideally from my optician. I sort of expected her to rubbish the notion, as I feared that she wanted to hang on to me as a customer. She basically advised me to consider Clear Lens Exchange (CLE) but only after a suitability assessment by what she considered the only worthwhile practice around namely Advance Vision Care. According to her they have the monopoly on world renowned professionals who are totally objective and would in the event see the whole process through themselves.
She was not wrong – from the very moment I went for the suitability assessment I had the feeling of being cared for by objective professionals who were definitely not in the game to tell me what I wanted to hear. CLE was considered the only option in my case which would give me good distant vision with the benefit of being able to see close up too. At the same time I was told that I could achieve that also with proper fitted glasses – indeed no heavy sale there the procedure.
In short, I went ahead with the CLE and have now a deep regret that I DID NOT DO IT EARLIER. The procedure, the care, the after care and the vision result (120% of the norm) is much much better that I ever could have dreamt of.

Excellent organisation, friendly staff, felt in safe hands

Very pleased with all service and treatments both at Harley Street and surgery centre, Colindeep Lane

I always wanted to do corrective eye surgery and be able to see my daughter’s cheeky smile in the morning, but I was delaying the decision for years. I chose Advanced Vision Care as my optician recommended Mr Pillai. Pawel Marcinkowski, who dealt with my appointments and assisted during the surgery, was always friendly and highly professional. He and Mr Pillai answered my questions and concerns. I made a decision to go ahead with the surgery when I was told that if the eyesight does not improve after the surgery, the clinic will do a corrective surgery free of charge and continue providing aftercare. This was important for me as my eyesight was really bad (big minus and astigmatism on both eyes), therefore I needed this reassurance.

The surgery was quick and painless. I could see well almost immediately. After three months Mr Pillai advised me to have a corrective surgery as my eyesight was not settled. The corrective surgery was even quicker than the first one. I am very happy with the result and recommend AVC to everyone with bad eye sight. One of my friends had his surgery done at AVC after I told him about my experience. I know that if I have any concerns about my eyesight, I can always call Pawel for advice. But I am sure, I would not have any concerns 🙂 The happiest person is my daughter as now I can see her well without glasses.

After an initial consultation at Ultralase I was told LASEK was my only option but did not feel comfortable with their staff and seemed not to want to answer my “technical” questions. After hours of reading and contacting previous patients I went for a consultation at AVC.

Dr Pillai was excellent at explaining everything and answering any questions-he also believed my best chance of success was with the LASIK procedure. I went with Dr Pillai because he seems very knowledgeable and most capable of dealing with any problems. The surgery was not bad at all and apart from the night goggles, all was fine .I am very pleased I week post-op with near 100% vision having been –7.00. Thanks very much AVC.

Everything was excellent from start to finish. The staff were good at making you feel at ease, did think I might change my mind. Have worn glasses for 30 years and now feel like I have a new lease of life. Have to wear glasses for reading but most people do between 40 and 50 years of age, So I didn’t mind that. I do alot of sport, play golf and swim and life is much easier now.

I am very pleased with the results. Service was excellent and still is. I have already recommended 2 friends and still trying to convince my sister for treatment.

A BBC article prompted me to contact London Vision Clinic about Lasik Treatment. I ruled them out because I was uncomfortable with some of their business methods. I then asked an optician if he knew of a high quality clinic offering Lasik and he told me that he had heard good reports about AVC, a clinic of which I was unaware of at the time. Although professionalism, experience and top quality equipment had to take precedence over price, I knew how much I wanted to pay for each eye and that I would shop around until I found a clinic that offered the right combination of quality and price. One of the reasons why I felt able to pursue the AVC lead was that they offered free initial consultations, something that was important as I was expecting to look at least 3 clinics before making a decision. When I arrived at AVC for my initial appointment, I was immediately impressed: the equipment seemed first class and Pawel Marcinkowski was clearly highly competent and efficient. In addition, he appeared to be continually checking and rechecking measurements. At the end of the initial consultation, C.T.Pillai refused to carry out Lasik treatment because my corneas were too thin and offered CLR as an alternative. The price was far higher than I had expected to pay for laser treatment and the idea of having my lenses pureed by ultrasound and then vacuumed out of my eyes lacked instant appeal. However, by this time, I was so impressed with the clinic that I decided to go ahead regardless. Nothing that happened subsequent to that initial appointment changed my opinion about AVC. All aspects of the multi- talents Pawel’s work continues to be highly impressive and the support staff, including the nurse at Collindale and the operating theatre support staff, are highly trained and very good at their jobs. Their checking of vital data at every step and the record keeping are also very impressive indeed. The surgeon, Professor Filipec, a man with a very striking CV, will not be the cheapest that AVC could have employed and is further evidence of a commitment to quality. At the time of the initial interview I felt that C.T.Pillai’s prediction of the outcome might be ambitious. At the time of writing, 12 days after the left eye operation and 5 days after the right eye operation. The actual results have far exceeded those predictions; both distance and close up resolution are far better than suggested could be the case. In addition, I get more accurate colour feedback, better contrast and suffer less from VDU glare. It is too soon for the novelty to have worn off and so I amuse myself by walking the streets reading car number plates at distances that I would never had thought possible. In a nutshell, clinical procedure at AVC is of the highest quality that I have ever seen and the clinical decisions taken were excellent, due to the quality of staff, equipment and procedure. Non- clinical standards were also very high but I can suggest a minor improvement. With the large disparity between my two eyes, together with the fact that I was wearing contact lens in the left eye only, it is clear that I would want the left eye treated first. The option was not offered to me and does not appear to have been considered; I got the impression that the right eye was treated first in every case. When I phoned the clinic and asked for the left eye to be treated first, C.T.Pillai agreed immediately and the change in plan was properly recorded and integrated into the admirable system of cross checking that they complete at each stage. I understand that AVC informs GPs of its services. I was referred to AVC by an optician and if it is not done already, the distribution of brochures informing opticians of the services offered by AVC may pay dividends in terms of future patient referrals.

I was really apprehensive about having eye surgery due to having a complex prescription. I was always under the impression that there was no treatment for my Keratoconus. Mr Pillai was really confident he could help me which helped me put my trust in the surgeons.

Post Crosslinking to my left eye I gained +3 vision and my visual distortion disappeared. My cornea healed really well. I’ve recently had Implantable Contact Lenses.

All the staff were brilliant, compassionate and caring. I was given diazepam pre surgery.All the post-operative drops were explained fully.

I can see, it’s a miracle.

PS Thank you to the nurse in the theatre who held my hand

The service at AVC was excellent. The staff helped put me at ease and made the whole procedure as easy as possible. My sister and I had the procedure on the same day and Pawel was excellent in helping her relax as she was extremely nervous and anxious I would definitely recommend AVC to anyone. Lasik has changed my life, it is amazing to be able to wake up every day and be able to see without glasses. Mr Pillai is an excellent surgeon and I felt very safe under his care. Thank you to everyone who looked after me at AVC