Optimax

I had epi-lasek on March 28th at the Finchley Road, London branch. I bought it on e-bay which saves a load of money and gives you exactly the same service. My prescription was -2.0 in both eyes. The clinic is fairly basic. They don't spend a stack on furniture, paint or decent coffee that's for sure! It kind of has the feel of being the easyjet of eye surgery. They do a few eye tests first and these were fine up until the optometrist, who was a pleasant enough guy but often didn't seem to know what he was talking about and was bluffing some of the answers to my questions (including contradicting some of the stats in their own brochure). If I had had to make a decision whether to proceed with Optimax at this point I would have walked out the door. He did not exude professionalism and you kind of want professionalism when it comes to your eye-sight. Anyway after that got to see the surgeon himself, Dr Patel and he totally inspired confidence. Really put me at ease and said that with my prescription there was a very good chance of an excellent outcome and little chance of any of the possible complications. He recommended epi-lasek as it is safer for lower prescriptions, even if more painful. So that's what I had. Basically the op itself is painless and quick. They give you various drops and tablets to take away with you. Make sure you have someone else there to take it all in and to get you home. Take the painkiller straight away so that it kicks in when the eye drops wear off. As others have said, you are out of action for about 3 days after. The day after, I spent in bed. You can hardly open your eyes. Incredibly light sensitive, watery etc. Get hold of some co-codamol if you can to take as well as the ibuprofen. You basically need strong painkillers and to be as sleepy as possible for that first day. Having the bandage lenses out is no fun. That was the worst bit for me. Had mine done on Friday (op Wednesday) which is a day early. Really need someone still to escort you about at this stage. By Friday night eyes were less sensitive and Sat and Sunday much better. Vision gets better slowly. My big disappointment was that I am not yet 20:20 (6 weeks later), which with my prescription I should have had a good chance of reaching. It is nice not to have glasses etc, but I am aware that I am still slightly short-sighted. It could get better and better over the next months, but if it doesn't then it is a lot of cash for a not perfect outcome. The optometrist (different one to the bluffer) said he thought I was a "bit unlucky". There is the possibility of retreatment but it is a lot of hassle to go through. I can see well enough to drive, but was hoping for more of a wow! Not sure if this would have been the case had I gone to another clinic or not. Hard to know. Could just be my eyes. Having said all that, no regrets. There is a level of anxiety going to Optimax because you have to ask yourself why it is so much cheaper. Are they paying top whack salaries and getting the best clinicians for example? On balance it feels to me that I paid a bargain price and got a less than excellent outcome, but a good enough one. Perhaps it's true: you get what you pay for.

following my message of 5th April it is now one month on and I have near perfect vision!! I opted to have mono vision which takes longer to adjust and I was very worried the first two weeks but everything Dr Ayoubi promised has happened so I would def recommend Optimax and Dr Ayoubi! Having laser treatment is a bigger decision than I first realised and is an emotional journey as well as a physical one so make sure you have someone with you for the first few days and don't panic if your sight is blurry for at least a week after Epi-Lasik.

I did a lot of research before going for surgery but I had Epi-Lasek with Wavefront on Friday 13th April at Bristol Optimax and I'm very pleased. Yes, I did have to wait around a lot on the day, but I was told that this is because it takes longer for them to deal with patients who can't have the surgery (they want to know exactly why they can't have it, etc.) I couldn't have Lasik because my corneas were too thin but, although I had wanted Epi-Lasik anyway, because it is a safer op, I was unprepared for the severity of the pain for the first 3 days. I literally couldn't leave a darkened room, with sunglasses on, for the first 24 hours and went through 24 extra strength paracetamol. Also, with Epi-Lasik, your vision improves gradually over the coming weeks so there's no 'wow' factor. I am 3 weeks in now and its better than driving standard (although I am slightly long-sighted at the moment) my check-up today confirmed that this was quite normal and that my eyes should improve further over the next 6-8 weeks. All in all, the pain at the beginning was worth the result. Incidentally, I purchased my op on Ebay direct from Russell Ambrose (MD of Optimax) for a bargain price of £395 per eye (Wavefront was an extra £150 per eye) and you can also have 18m or 36m credit if you wish. The doctors were extremely professional and didn't try to sell me anything more than I needed, I decided to have Wavefront because my pupils were a bit big and this could have caused halos at night. If your thinking of having surgery, give Optimax a go, I really can't fault them.

I had LASIK carried out at the Optimax clinic in Glasgow last Monday (30th April) by Dr Anwar. My prescription was -3.75 and -5 with slight astigmatism in both eyes. I checked this forum before I went and was slightly worried by the lack of info on the Glasgow clinic. I went ahead anyway (maybe not too sensible!) and it was all fine. The worst thing about the whole thing was the wait. I had my consultation at 9am and then the surgery at about 3pm which meant a lot of time to worry in between. When it came to it Dr Anwar and the assistants made me feel at ease. He talked all the way through and explained exactly what was going on. It took about 20 mins I think, which passed really quickly. I had read that people find it 'uncomfortable' which I thought meant it was painful. It wasn't at all painful and the discomfort was really just that it felt a bit weird to have people prodding at your eyeballs! Even in on the day of the surgery I felt no pain but was certainly light sensitive. I could see fairly well within about 2hrs. By the time I got up the next morning, the light sensitivity was gone and I could see - it was amazing. At the moment my eyesight is well above driving standard and slightly less than 20:20 vision but after years of glasses and contact lenses, if it stayed like this I'd be over the moon. For me, it was worth the money and worry ( although it wasn't really worth worrying about!)

After thinking about laser eye surgery since I knew of its existance, I saw the ebay offer and decided to go for it..... I saw Dr Boezaart at the Manchester clinic yesterday and am typing this review with almost perfect vision!! I went for Lasik (as I was too scared to try the epi-lasek!!). I listened to the optometrist talking about wavefront and femto but decided just to go for standard lasik as its at least £600 cheaper! I had my consultation and treatment on the same day and, when it came round to my turn - I was petrified and was thinking if I should tell the nice receptionist that ive made a mistake and cant go through with it. I stuck to it and spoke to Dr Boezaart (I had already looked him up on the internet and saw that he was very highly qualified and was on the GMC register which put my mind at ease slightly)he was very polite and confident and told me I didnt need to be scared - id be ok. The procedure was over in less than 20 minutes and although it was uncomfortable - it didnt hurt. The only problem I had was all the literature I looked up and was given before the procedure said lasik was "pain free," mine wasnt. As soon as I got outside into the sun my eyes would not open even with sunglasses on, they were stinging and burning and my faces was soaking wet with tears, the anaesthetic drops were such a relief even if they did only work for 15mins at a time, you could put them in every half an hour!! Anyway about 4 hours later my eyes werent hurting and now they're fine. I think Dr Boezaart is a credit to Optimax and realise I needn't have worried so much!

I will only be at the above e-mail address until the 04/05/07.

Pre-op prescription: -0.7 Left, -0.8 Right, with astigmatism in both eyes. I had bi-lateral femtosecond Lasik Wavefront, on Thurs 19 Apr at Optimax Southampton, with Dr Ayoubi. Having suffered from ridiculously short sight for more years than I can remember, losing my glasses in a freak wave while in Spain last year gave me the motivation to get my eyes zapped. I had the treatment done last Thursday and have since had a good chuckle remembering the process after reading various posts on here before hand (the dreaded eye clamps, the burning smell .. sound familiar ?). The following 4 hours after surgery were extremely uncomfortable - felt like I had been jabbed in the eyes with raw chilis, thank God I had someone there to help with the eye drops ! But about 10pm it had eased off eneough to enable me to sleep through the night. The following morning the cloudiness and the stinging had eased off and to my amazement, I could read number plates 150 ft away and shopfront signs 400 metres away ... very wierd, but very reassuring ! Had my 24 hour follow up and was able to read just above driving standard (Before surgery I wouldn't have even known there was an eye chart up in front of me !) and the doctor (?) assured me I was ok to drive. Later that day, I felt that truly was the case, but have resisted the urge yet. He also assured me that the cloudiness and bluriness I still had would clear by the 7 day follow up, which I have next Friday (27th). 3 days later, my vision is great outside (probably about 95% there), but in low light and even darkness, I'm struggling and it's still quite blurry when I'm reading or typing. Close up stuff in general is still iffy. Is anyone else out there experiencing the same ? I'm happy with how it's gone, I guess I'm just impatient and if the truth be known, I hope this isn't as good as my vision is going to get. Read lots of stuff about vision improving gradually over the coming weeks/months, just hope its right. Would really appreciate feedback from anyone who shares the same concerns. For those out there who are waiting to have it done, hope it all goes well for you !

I had Lasik surgery with Wavefront in both eyes on Friday 13th April at Bristol clinic. I put off the treatment for years but eventually there was 10 days between the initial call and the surgery. I would recommend this treatment to anyone, especially those who are really short sighted. I was -8 in both eyes so I really couldnt live without my contacts. The staff at Bristol were outstanding, although 2 had been borrowed from Brighton for the day. The surgeon I had was Dr Saeed who put me at ease straight away and kept talking to me throughout the treatment. If I had 1 complaint it would be the time keeping. I had read a lot of comments about it and I was no exception. I was due in first at 230 but didnt actually go in until 430, which baring in mind I had been there since 8 that morning was a long day. I have since learnt that the staff didnt leave until after 8 that night. The treatment itself doesnt hurt, and I'm a wimp when it comes to pain. The worst part is the ring that is used to keep your eyes open, you cant feel the laser and the smell that people write about really isnt that bad. Again, I would thank the staff at Gristol and would recommend the surgery to anyone

I went for a consulation at Optimaxs Finchley Road, London clinic and I was quite impressed. I felt no sales pressure and they seemed very thorough (even meeting a surgeon allegedly). However, they did not recommend me for treatment due to large pupils combined with a poor prescription. I appreciated their honesty. I have since had the procedure done with another company which does ask the question as to whether optimax's surgeons/equipment are as good as other clinics, or whether it is just that other clinics arent as careful/conservative as optimax? However, I was assured by 3 other clinics that I was a suitable candidate and so have gone ahead.

I had Lasik with Wavefront on Tuesday (17th April 2007) and was surprised how easy it was. Optimax Ipswich staff were welcoming and friendly. Dr Almasri was very good. My vision after 24 hours was great. I do think that in this case you get what you pay for - Lasik may be more expensive but you don't need the painkillers!