Chat transcript: Two LASIK patients describe eye surgery

(CNN) -- The following is an edited transcript of a health chat with Pete Whitley and Kirk Carver, who joined us to discuss the results of their LASIK procedures. Whitley and Carver joined us on Thursday, August 26, 1999.

Chat Moderator: Our weeklong health chat series on eyesight, procedures and the future continues today with two patients who share their good and bad experiences with the LASIK procedure.

Chat Moderator: Welcome, Pete Whitley!

Pete Whitley: Thank you.

Chat Moderator: Did you do research first? How did you find out about it? How did you find a doctor?

Pete Whitley: My parents found the doctor and gave me the procedure as a gift. I did some brief research. But my parents did most of the research.

Chat Moderator: Pete, are you happy with the results?

Pete Whitley: Fantastic. I'm very happy with it. I would recommend it to everybody.

Question from: FedUp: Was Pete nearsighted?

Pete Whitley: Yes, I was very nearsighted. My vision was 9.5 diopters in the left eye, 10.5 in the right: extreme nearsightedness.

Question from: Cathy: What finally made you decide to have the surgery? And was it worth it? If you had the chance, would you choose differently now?

Pete Whitley: It is such a relief to not have to take out my contacts in the evening and put them in in the morning. I can see slightly better than with contacts. Enough to tell the difference.

Question from: Imago: Did you continue to see improvement over time?

Pete Whitley: The first week, I saw a great deal of improvement, and then it leveled off after that.

Question from: big: Does insurance cover this?

Pete Whitley: No, the insurance does not cover it.

Question from: Kirk Carver: What laser was used?

Pete Whitley: Good question Kirk. I don't really know. I'm digging in my material now. Can't find it.... I forgot. It is a long name, but I forgot.

Chat Moderator: Do you have any regrets? Are there any drawbacks?

Pete Whitley: One drawback is that there are star bursts when I'm driving at night and look at a bright light: There are like light bolts coming off the star. The doctors call it the "star burst effect." But it is going away.

Question from: Gil: The star bursts don't bother you, Pete?

Pete Whitley: Actually, at first they bothered me. For about a week while driving at night, they were distracting. But it has gone down a bit since the first week after the surgery.

Question from: FedUp: Is that normal?

Pete Whitley: Yes, the star bursts, or halos, are normal. The reason is when your pupils are dilated and then you look at an oncoming headlight, they cannot contract fast enough when going from dark to light.

Question from: Gil: Pete, do you have large pupils in dim light?

Pete Whitley: Yes.

Question from: Kirk: How long ago did you have the procedure?

Pete Whitley: I had it last November 1998.

Question from: FedUp: Did you have both eyes done at once?

Pete Whitley: Yes, I did.

Question from: SueCNN: Pete, did you have any pain during the procedure or in the days following?

Pete Whitley: No pain at all. They say that there can be a scratchy sensation, but I felt no pain, either during the procedure or afterward. That is not to say that the procedure wasn't uncomfortable; it was a little bit uncomfortable because they had my eyes pried wide open.

Question from: Candyce: I've heard that the FDA recommends waiting three months between eyes. Did you consider that, or had you heard that from your doctor?

Pete Whitley: No, I've never heard that. They said it was perfectly normal to have both eyes done at the same time. Maybe the reason they say that is in case something happens to one eye, you still have a good eye.

Question from: SueCNN: Did you need enhancements?

Pete Whitley: Yes, I did. I already had one enhancement on the right eye. It was only correctable to 20/40. After the enhancement it is about 20/30. I'm going to try to see if they can do one more enhancement. But they tell me that it may not be correctable to 20/20.

Question from: SueCNN: Do you ever need any corrective lenses now?

Pete Whitley: No, I don't. I'm perfectly happy with my vision as it is. One reason I'm considering the other enhancement is because I'm comparing it to my left eye, which is perfect. But I can definitely live with it the way it is. It is common to get enhancements done after the initial procedure.

Question from: FedUp: Do you keep paying for enhancements?

Pete Whitley: No, you don't. It is good for one year.

Chat Moderator: Have you had any problems since the procedure was done?

Pete Whitley: None at all. Infection is very rare. For example, if you went into the procedure with strep throat or something, it can spread when the eye is opened up. It is equivalent to open heart surgery on your eye. It is major surgery, and it is absolutely imperative that you have no infections going in.

Question from: SueCNN: Do you know a lot of other people who have had the procedure? And if so, are they are pleased as you are?

Pete Whitley: Yes, everybody is pleased. My sister had it done, and she felt a little scratchiness after the procedure, and she had to go back for an enhancement, too. But she is very happy with it. I think that they undercorrect at first as a safety precaution, making enhancements necessary later.

Question from: SueCNN: Does an enhancement present any danger to you? Is there a possibility of overcorrection?

Pete Whitley: They get the measurement so fine that overcorrection is unlikely. The enhancement process is much easier than the initial surgery -- less uncomfortable, takes less time.

Question from: Todd: How much did it cost you?

Pete Whitley: $2,400 per eye plus a $100 eye check at the beginning.

Question from: Skipper: Where did our interview guests get their procedure done?

Pete Whitley: I got it done at the Emory Vision Correction Center at the Northside Hospital in Atlanta. It was performed by Dr. George Waring, who was one of the inventors of the procedure.

Question from: Cathy: Would you recommend getting this surgery or waiting to see what new advancements come out in the next few years?

Pete Whitley: I would recommend getting this surgery. That's how pleased I am with it. This is the only thing on the horizon for severely nearsighted people. For not-so-nearsighted people, there are more options: radial keratotomy (RK), and a new procedure is available where they insert a lens in the eye. I would not have been a candidate for either procedure because my vision was so bad.

Question from: SusanS: What are the risks involved with these procedures? Can one's vision be worse after than before?

Pete Whitley: It's possible, but highly unlikely. They get the measurements so fine.

Question from: Skipper: There was no halo problem with LASIK?

Pete Whitley: No halos, just star bursts. But the doctors warned me that there may be halos; but they never appeared.

Chat Moderator: What do you suggest others do before they go through LASIK?

Pete Whitley: I think the key is to choose the right doctor. Get a lot of references. I've heard that some doctors don't do as well as others. Do some research. Get references. It’s a very quick procedure, and I would recommend it to anyone who has nearsightedness.

Chat Moderator: Thank you, Pete Whitley, for joining us to discuss your LASIK procedure.

Pete Whitley: Great! I hope I've helped a lot of people. I'm really thrilled with the operation. I think it’s the wave of the future.

Chat Moderator: Our weeklong health chat series on eyesight, procedures and the future continues with Pete Whitley and Kirk Carver to discuss with us their LASIK procedures.

Chat Moderator: Welcome, Kirk Carver! Kirk Carver also had the LASIK procedure, but he has a different opinion of the results.

Chat Moderator: Hi, Kirk. Thanks for joining us today .

Kirk Carver: You're welcome.

Chat Moderator: Kirk, why aren't you happy with your LASIK procedure?

Kirk Carver: My low light and night vision are debilitating.

Question from: SueCNN: Kirk, what made you decide to have LASIK?

Kirk Carver: I have had a high astigmatism all of my life. I am relatively active outdoors and in sports. Contacts would never fit me right.

Question from: Rick: I'm reluctant to undergo the operation, though I'm blind as a bat. Why does he think some people have such a good success, and others, such as himself, feel it was a major mistake?

Kirk Carver: I feel the success centers around your expectations and the care your doctor gives you, BEFORE and after the procedure.

Question from: Todd: What problems did you have with LASIK?

Kirk Carver: At night and in low light situations, I have double vision and the "starring" effect mentioned earlier. This makes it hard to drive, see a movie, eat dinner, etc.

Question from: Katie: What's the difference between a halo and a star burst? Have you experienced either of these?

Kirk Carver: I don't have halos, per se. Star bursts look like stars around bright objects -- it's a form of diplopia (double vision).

Question from: sv: Can you use any corrections like glasses/drugs to reduce the starring effect?

Kirk Carver: Glasses will not help, as the effect is caused by "irregular astigmatism.” I use a drug called RevEyes, which reduces my pupil size and allows me to function OK. RevEyes is a diagnostic drug, however, and its long-term effects are not known. Pilocarpine can be used like RevEyes, but I don't like what it does to your lenses.

Question from: FedUp: How many enhancements did you get after the initial operation?

Kirk Carver: I had one enhancement procedure (both eyes) three months after the initial.

Question from Guyin40s: Kirk, is your daytime vision OK?

Kirk Carver: Daytime vision is acceptable, unless it becomes cloudy. I get dry eyes periodically and a little haze.

Question from: Mike: What made you choose LASIK over PRK ?

Kirk Carver: PRK destroys a layer of the eye called Bowman's membrane. I was not comfortable with that. Also, LASIK involves a natural

Question from: SueCNN: Did you do a lot of research first?

Kirk Carver: I THOUGHT I did a lot of research, but now I realize that I had only scratched the surface.

Question from: sv: Can you hold the doctor liable for vision problems after surgery?

Kirk Carver: Legal avenues are difficult when it comes to medicine -- lawyers tend to shy away from all malpractice cases, aside from the blatantly easy and lucrative ones. I would rather work with the doctors, however. It is the only way I can get my vision back. Lawyers just make everyone defensive and closed.

Question from: Guyin40s: You are obviously dissatisfied. Have they offered you your money back? Is there a pending lawsuit or anything on this? Or did you sign off holding them responsible in order to go through the procedure?

Kirk Carver: They have not offered me my money back, but they have offered to help me with any surgeries I may need in the future to correct my problem.

Question from: FedUp: Was the problem with the laser, the doctor or your particular eyes?

Kirk Carver: It’s a combination of all three: My astigmatism requires that the laser cut a special way. This cut aggravates the starring. Also the cut, or "ablation," was off center.

Question from: Rick: Is there any chance the damage can be repaired?

Kirk Carver: With the present technology in the United States, no. I am looking at several procedures outside the United States, all involving "custom ablation" technology.

Question from: Guyin40s: Where did you have your procedure done? Was it at the same place Pete had his?

Kirk Carver: I had my procedure in Houston, Texas, at a large LASIK clinic there.

Question from: Skipper: What about in Colombia, where LASIK originated?

Question from: FedUp: What country is at the forefront of this technology?

Kirk Carver: I am traveling to Bogota in October to have an exam with Dr. Tamayo (Gustavo E. Tamayo Fernandez), who is working on a custom ablation procedure using the VISX laser. I am probably not qualified to say what country is at the forefront, but there is a lot coming from Colombia, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan.

Question from: Are: Are there any statistics regarding satisfied vs. unsatisfied LASIK patients?

Kirk Carver: Unfortunately, there are no good data out there. This leads to an uninformed public. I do know that I get one to two e-mails a day from LASIK patients who had a bad experience and are looking for help.

Chat Moderator: Again, what do you suggest others do before they go through LASIK?

Kirk Carver: I suggest you make sure your surgeon has YOUR best interests in mind and is willing to give you answers to detailed questions about how your eyes will fare after the surgery. Be wary of larger pupils, and high prescriptions, and off-label lasers.

Chat Moderator: Thank you, Kirk Carver, for joining us to discuss your LASIK procedure.

Kirk Carver: Thank you, and I hope I help y’all.