Optimax

I had Lasik with Wavefront & Femtosecond on 09/11/06 and I am very happy so far. As said Dr Madu... doesnt say too much, but is very professional, and answers any questions. The operation went fine, no pain at all - quite enjoyed the excitement really. That evening was quite uncomfortable, once the anaesthetic wore off, but by the next morning there was no discomfort. My vision was still a bit hazy, but that got better through the day. My check up the day after the op went well, and I had 20:20 vision. My prescription before was -7.25 & -5.75. Less than 48hrs after the op I was back at work, with no problems at all. Even the day after the op I had no probs cooking or anything - although TV was unfortunately uncomfortable still, so as advised I had to refrain! My only critism was the waiting times, I was early for each appointment, but was kept waiting a long time, 2 hrs on the day of the op. I would have no hesitation in recommending a consultation with Optimax.

I have booked to Epi-Lasek at Manchester on 25 November. Even though I have booked Epi-Lasek, I am still undecided whether to opt for Lasik due to less pain and the length of recovery. Has anyone any advice they can give me (I have read several articles regarding Lasik being 'risky'?)

I had Lasik Wavefront at Optimax, Peterborough with Dr Hill on Mon 06 November. I could not be happier. Dr Hill was so reassuring in his manner, talking me through the process at ach stage so I knew exactly what to expect. The usrgery itself was a breeze, certainly better than a trip to the dentist, even the dreaded burning smell was nothing more than something similar to someone lighting a match. My vision straight after was great and has improved since, so far it is better than 20/20, but I have been advised that it may drop off slightly. The day of treatment was a bit sore, but since then I have been totally pain free and I remain obsessive about using hte prescribed drops to make sure it stays that way. I could not describe exactly how happy I am with every stage of this process.

I had Lasik surgery last week @ the Birmingham clinic with Dr Madhusudhan and am very happy with the results! After a bad, off-putting hard sell consultation at Optical express the professionalism & opportunity to meet the surgeon before the day of operation was a breath of fresh air. Although a guy of little words the Dr obviously knew what he was talking about and seemed very honest. He encouraged me not to waste my money on adding Wavefront as it wouldn't help my particular prescription (he also showed me how & why on the wavefront mapping scans that are taken as part of the course). Operation day was nerve racking, and if I'm honest the actual surgery was quite an unpleasant experience (although painless). However can't fault the clinic. The day of the surgery & day after is uncomfortable but this gets better by the end of he second day. I was expecting to be bright & bouncy by the second, but realistically even with Lasik surgery it takes a week for things to settle (or at least it did for me). You can't get any water in your eyes, and therefore have to be careful in the shower and have to have someone else wash your hair. You can't cook or do any housework for at least the first 3 days. And you have to sleep with very attractive eye patches! However any unpleasantness has already paled into the dim distant past, as 8 days on i have 20:20 vision and am exploring a world through new eyes! Not to be taken as lightly as some of these companies would like you to... but definitely worth it in the end! By all means get in touch if you'd like more info ;o)

I had epi-lasek at Southampton Branch this morning. What can I say? The telephone staff were fantastic, so helpful. The clinic staff were so friendly and reasurring, despite me shaking like a leaf, they were fantastic. The consultant was so very friendly adn calming. He explained everything in a way I understood and was so kind and reasurring. Please if you are looking for laser surgery forget the rest and go with Optimax. I cant believe that I had my eyes laseked at 11am this morning! ALthough to be honest there is pain after the drops were off ( about 2hrs later) it doesnt last. I was very uncomfortable but the more you rest the easier it is. The procedure itself was totally pain free! Even the clamps were not at all uncomfortable. You do smell burning ( a bit like at the dentist) but that is it. It is cool in the laser room ( it has to be for the laser) so make sure you have something warm on. I cannot praise Southanpton Highly enough. THANK YOU!!!

I've just undergone bilateral treatment via lasik with Optimax at the Leeds branch. I was -8 in both eyes and my main worry was that i would still have to wear glasses after treatment but now 3 days after my operation i'm -0.25 and -0.75. I am so impressed i can not recommend the treatment enough! Although the operation was one that i never wish to experience again it was well worth it and it really was pain free. The only slight discomfort i experienced was dry eyes when trying to sleep. If anyone is reading this (like i was a few weeks ago) wondering if it's the right thing to do then my advice would be to go for it, it's definitely worth it!

After years of contemplation and a fortune spent on contact lenses I finally bit the bullet and opted for laser eye surgery. After much research including a look at this website I decided to go with Optimax. They seemed like a good balance of cost, reputation and convenience. On my initial consultation I was advised on my options for treatment and was never pushed into anything. It was recommended that the LASEK method may be more suitable for me. It's not often that companies recommend the cheaper of their services and it reinforced my initial positive impression and that Optimax were putting the customer before profit. I also opted for the Wavefront treatment - "in for a penny, in for a pound" sort of mentality. Around a week later I got a friend to drive me to the clinic for my surgery. The procedure itself seemed very straightforward and painless although the more squeamish might find the smell of burning eyeball a little offensive. I was worried that I might look away from the laser during surgery but there is no temptation to do so and from what I understand the laser will compensate or shut off with eye movement so it won't lase the bits it shouldn't. Immediately following treatment I could already see that there was something definitely clearer about my vision despite the blurring of watery eyes. It was around half an hour after surgery when the discomfort started to kick in. Initially there was mild burning sensation with the feeling that someone was pressing slightly on the eyeballs. The clinic had given me a whole bunch of medication and a prescription for some more. The has also given me some anaesthetic eye drops but said that I should try not to use them as it can affect the healing process and slow it down. By the time I got home there was no way I wasn't going to squirt the first vial straight into my eyes. The relief from the discomfort was most welcome and I quickly necked the sedatives before the discomfort returned. I slept pretty much solid for the first 24 hours by which time most of the discomfort had gone replaced by a sensitivity to light. Watching TV was difficult and it was mid World Cup... talk about bad planning. A week after the surgery I started HGV driver training and despite my eyes still not being perfect I passed the eye test easily. Within a month my eyesight was near perfect apart from a star-burst effect in my left eye at night. I had also experienced mild dryness of the eyes particularly when waking up in the morning. I had my final check around a month by which time my vision was perfect, even at night. My vision is now better than 20/20 in both eyes and it's much better than it ever was with contacts or glasses despite quite a mild pre-op prescription of only 1.5 (short sighted). Apparently I am now long-sighted by 0.25 in both eyes but it's really not perceptible and no correction is necessary. The occassional dry eye problem is mild but still crops up from time to time especially the morning after a long night out. Overall, I'm very happy with the treatment and the results. My only regret is not having it done years ago when I would have saved a fortune on contacts and glasses.

I had Wavefront Epilasek at the Liverpool Clinic on 28/09/06. The surgeon was Dr. Madhusudhan, who, as other people have said, is quite laconic. But that suited me. I prefer a surly bedside manner. Nevertheless, he had fully explained to me, with the aid of images of my eyes on his computer screen, exactly how he would successfully perform the procedure. Before my consultation, I was hoping that I would be suitable for Epi, as it would enable me to return to playing football sooner than LASIK would. For my eyes, the two options were LASIK performed with Femtosecond Laser (which would cost an additional £1000) or Epi with Wavefront (£300 extra). These were the options because I have thinner corneas than average. I selected the Epi with Wavefront option. At no time, though, did I get the impression that there was any hard sell for the dearer option. Once the doctor knew I wanted Epi, he agreed to perform it. I actually purchased my treatment through Ebay: in all, it cost £1195. On the day of treatment, I was a tad nervous, probably because I was there unaccompanied. Here's what happens: you lie on a couch after donning a foolish looking hat. (But that's clinics I suppose.) The doctor then anaesthetises your first eye while the attending nurse counts out how long it has been administered for... 30, 40 seconds, etc. Once this has been done, the doctor uses a speculum (which, look up) to keep your eye open and relatively still. THIS DOES NOT HURT AT ALL. Then you are directed to stare at a red light above you, at which point the laser machine seems to whirr into life. Because (I think) of the anaesthetic and other moisture in the eye, the red light becomes like a dancing kaleidoscope-rouge if you will.... Then there are some crackly noises (sounds worse than it is) and a slightly acrid odour (again sounds worse than it is - but hey, it is LASER eye surgery). AT NO TIME DURING SURGERY IS THERE ANY PAIN. The laser is active for a matter of seconds, the speculum is removed, more drops are introduced onto your eye, and you are then asked to blink and tightly close your eyes, open, blink, etc. The procedure is then repeated on the other eye. After surgery, you sit up, and the nurse checks your vision with a chart, which at this point in my case, was rather blurred, with glimpses of clarity. You are then issued with your painkillers, sedatives and eye-drops, with an explanation of how and when to use them - the directions are issued to you in writing also. The following is what I personally experienced afterwards: within 20 minutes the anaesthetic wore off and I became increasingly sensitive to light. By one hour after, my eyes were becoming quite sore. Between 2 hours and 36 hours after the operation, the pain was akin to having hot shampoo in my eyes. (But without being able to rinse it out!) Unpleasant, but still worth it in my opinion. The painkillers assuaged the pain a little. But a big cheer for the sedatives, which knocked me out good and proper. A lot of the first 36 hours was killed by the action of the sedatives. I would suggest that anyone who elects for this type of surgery has someone to care for them for about 24 to 36 hours. You won't wanna be chopping and frying your onions during this time. After about 48 hours my vision was unstable, but realising more and more clarity. I was able to drive by the third day. It's now two weeks since the surgery, and today I had a check up. The optometrist told me that I was just bordering on 20/20 in both eyes, with anticipated further improvement to come! I am therefore very pleased with the results so far. To be able to see clearly without all the hassle of glasses and lenses is WELL WORTH IT. At all times I was dealt with courteously and professionally by all the staff with whom I came into contact. FIVE STARS.

Dr Manek Patel was my surgeon about 4 years ago & my sight is perfect 20/20 vision I used to have 2 sets of glasses . I am now free of them - Wonderful

Overall a very positive experience of epi-lasek treatment at the Hove Optimax clinic. Just be aware that the recovery period with lasek can be quite prolonged and the initial post-op pain once the anaesthetic has worn off has the potential to be very debilitating. I was very blase about this before, but trying to lookafter myself for the first 8 hours post-op was horrible. If you are by yourself then make every effort arrange a carer for the first 24 hours. Also, the final results to take a while to take a while to arrive. I am nearly three weeks post-op now and distance vision is still improving. Lastly be aware of that the eyelid can stick to the epithelium overnight causing temporary set backs. Use those drops!