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Medical Forum / General / Vision / May 2005LASIK and flight
Back in the bad old days of RK patients were told not to fly on commercial airliners for some period after having the procedure done. Presumably this was because pressure changes in the aircraft cabin would adversely affect the healing process. In the age of zero-incision LASIK are patients still being given this instruction? A friend of mine from UK is coming to the US on hols and is considering incorporating a trip thru the LASIK suite into her itinerary. How soon after having the procedure will she be able to fly? +++++++++++++ Reply to the list as I do not publish an email address to USENET. This practice has cut my spam by more than 95%. Of course, I did have to abandon a perfectly good email account... The days of "zero incision LASIK" are not yet upon us. LASIK still requires an incision to create the LASIK flap, whether that incision is created by a laser or a blade. A primary concern today with flying immediately after refractive surgery is dehydration. The eyes need to be moist and the recycled conditioned air in a commercial airliner is not a very friendly environment for potentially dry eyes. If your friend has no other complication related issues, a long flight should be tolerable with the frequent use of preservative-free eye drops. Your friend should wait several days after surgery to affirm that all is well, and if your friend travels within a week or two of surgery she should be certain to make arrangements with a refractive surgeon in the US to be available should any problems arise. Glenn Hagele Executive Director USAEyes.org "Consider and Choose With Confidence" Email to glenn dot hagele at usaeyes dot org http://www.USAEyes.org http://www.ComplicatedEyes.org I am not a doctor. >The days of "zero incision LASIK" are not yet upon us. LASIK still >requires an incision to create the LASIK flap, whether that incision >is created by a laser or a blade. Hm, wonder why one of the local quacks is advertising his LASIK as incision free. I may call and enquire. If nothing else I can attend yet another poorly-presented education seminar while drinking warm powdered-drink lemonade and eating stale Sam's cookies. Anything in the name of research. >A primary concern today with flying immediately after refractive >surgery is dehydration. The eyes need to be moist and the recycled >conditioned air in a commercial airliner is not a very friendly >environment for potentially dry eyes. Hm, I hadn't thought of that. The last time I flew to Europe I lost more than 5# on the flight, despite my copious water consumption. >If your friend has no other complication related issues, a long >flight should be tolerable with the frequent use of preservative-free [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >refractive surgeon in the US to be available should any problems >arise. That shouldn't be a problem. She generally comes over for a month and would probably have the procedure during her first week here, if she decides to have it. It isn't that she can't have LASIK in the UK, but its "more expensiver" there than here, apparently. If I were in her shoes I'd have it done there and forego holidays for a year (and the associated shopping), but that's just me. +++++++++++++ Reply to the list as I do not publish an email address to USENET. This practice has cut my spam by more than 95%. Of course, I did have to abandon a perfectly good email account... |
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