“It’s like my eyes are being cut by glass”… A woman says she’ll have lifelong pain after LASIK. How bad is it?

A woman who was nearsighted shared her story of how she had LASIK surgery five years ago and how it ruined her life with unbearable pain. She urged people to thoroughly examine their eyes before deciding on surgery.

According to the British daily Mirror, 36-year-old Erin Orchard decided to get LASIK because she was nearsighted and had difficulty wearing glasses every day, and contact lenses didn’t work well for her. Another reason was that she didn’t want to wear glasses on her upcoming wedding day. Orchard’s mother had LASIK surgery a few years ago and has been doing well, so she decided to get the surgery.

I had LASIK surgery in January 2019. 48 hours after the surgery, I started experiencing severe eye pain, halos, and sensitivity to light. At my first follow-up visit, my doctor assured me that these symptoms were normal, that I was recovering well, and that I would be able to return to work within a few days.

But the pain did not go away as time passed. He consulted with the surgical team several times, but they could not find the cause of the pain. The pain continued to get worse, and he became so weak that he could not work, and he could not even go out. Orchard had to stay in a dark room because of his sensitivity to light, and he could not look at his phone or computer screen for more than a minute or two. He spent his time only listening to podcasts.

Corneal Neuralgia Diagnosed as a Post-LASIK Complication… Sharp Pain Like Glass Cut, No Treatment

Orchard felt a pain in his eyes every hour of every day, as if shards of glass were being cut into his eyes. It was sharp, burning, and stabbing. Almost five years later, the symptoms still remain. Even small stimuli, such as wind or air conditioning, were unbearable. He wore large protective glasses to minimize the impact, but the ridiculous appearance soon became a source of stress and anxiety.

Orchard was diagnosed with ‘corneal neuralgia’. He was told that he would have long-term pain and that there was no cure. He was devastated. The sensitivity to light went away after a few months, but the sharp pain, like being cut by glass, never went away. Orchard considered canceling the wedding because of this, but went ahead with it, and took medication on the day of the wedding to endure the pain.

Before the surgery, she was in great physical and mental health, her career was going well, and she was looking forward to important moments like buying her first home and starting a family. But after the surgery, her life completely changed. She and her husband, Liam, were planning to have their first child in mid-to-late 2019, but the medication she was taking made it difficult for them to get pregnant. Even if they did get pregnant, there was a high risk of complications because the medication was considered high-risk. Orchard regrets having LASIK and urges people to look into refractive surgery.

LASIK side effects are unavoidable for some people…US FDA: “Long-term data still lacking”

The corneal neuralgia (bilateral post-laser refractive surgery corneal neuralgia) that Orchard experienced is a complication that can occur with LASIK surgery. In fact, it has been reported that the side effect rate of vision correction surgery has decreased due to the advancement of technology and equipment, but many people still experience basic side effects such as glare and dry eyes. In particular, in severe cases, 0.6 to 1% of patients can experience fatal side effects close to blindness. This is why a thorough preoperative examination is important.

The US FDA states that “certain complications may be unavoidable for some patients with vision correction surgeries such as LASIK and LASEK, and that long-term data on the current procedure are lacking” and that “adverse effects from the surgery are inevitable for a certain percentage of patients, and there are no long-term studies on the current surgical method.”

The LASIK surgery that Orchard received is a procedure that makes a flap by cutting the cornea and then correcting it with a laser. The flap is a thin flap that is temporarily made by cutting the surface of the cornea, that is, the corneal epithelium layer, to access the deep layer of the cornea. After the flap is made, the deep part of the cornea is corrected with a laser to adjust the vision. After the flap is made and the correction is complete, this flap is put back in its original place, and at this time, it is left to naturally attach without stitches. The advantages of LASIK are that this process is relatively quick, less painful, and the recovery is quick.

However, there is a risk that corneal nerves may be damaged during the flap creation process, which may lead to complications such as dry eye or neuralgia. When creating a corneal flap, many nerves distributed in the cornea are cut, and these nerves play an important role not only in vision but also in the sensation of the eye and in controlling tear secretion. During the process of nerve regeneration, abnormal pain signals may be sent, which may cause continued pain and photosensitivity. Furthermore, if the nerves do not regenerate normally after being cut, the pain may become long-term. Some patients experience pain during the process or have problems with excessive transmission of pain signals even after the nerves regenerate.

It’s unclear what prior procedures Orchard had on his cornea, but some people’s corneas may be more susceptible to nerve damage. A particular individual’s nervous system may react abnormally after surgery, causing pain. Pain after nerve damage may be worse due to an individual’s constitution or underlying medical conditions, such as dry eye.

A thorough examination is absolutely necessary before LASIK surgery… If you have thin corneas and do it without thinking,

Accordingly, LASIK is most important for the condition of the cornea, and it is essential to evaluate whether the cornea is suitable for LASIK. If the cornea thickness is examined and it is thin, other surgical methods such as LASEK may be more suitable. In addition, the shape and surface condition of the cornea should be examined through a corneal topography test. It evaluates how smooth and even the cornea is, and if the cornea has an abnormal shape or is irregular, LASIK surgery may be dangerous.

Since dry eye is common after LASIK surgery, it is important to check if you have dry eye or if you have the potential for it before surgery. People who already have dry eye or do not produce enough tears are more likely to have worse symptoms after surgery. It is also important to measure intraocular pressure before surgery to prevent complications and check for other eye diseases such as glaucoma or cataracts. It is also necessary to evaluate how stable your vision is and the expected effects of vision correction after surgery. People with certain genetic factors may be at a higher risk of complications.