Laser Eye Treatment in India

CatCat

Hi Guys

Does anyone have any comments about having laser eye treatment in India ?
I'm very short sighted and the thought of getting rid of my contact lenses and glasses is very appealing... !!
Has anyone had the treatment done in India ? If so what was the cost ?

Look forward to your replies

CatCat

stormysky

I know someone who had this done in Bombay a couple of years ago. It cost her 30,000 INR then = US $ 650

Regards
sk

Kanbe

whoa, thats a whole lot cheaper than Australia. My friend got it done over here for nearly 6X more.

Digital Drifter

For eyes, I'd suggest you try these first.

1. Shankar nethralaya(madras only I think)
2. Aravind eye hospital(Coimbatore/Madurai/Pondicherry/Tirunelveli)
Not sure whether it's in Madras


For about Rs 50-100(which entitles you to 2 more free visits that
year), you'll be methodically taken from floor to floor, tested for
various eye diseases before your specific eye issues are handled by
doctors of increasing expertise and experience.

It'll be like an army barracks experience but I urge you to do it even
if you're /not/ taking up surgery there. you'll be grouped in a
bunch, your eyes tested first for power, then followed by interns
who'll check your eyes and ask a few questions about your eyes and
then handed over to the next floor where you'll again be grouped into
cataract/glaucoma/other wings. If you have multiple problems, you'd
go to all the wings, where you'll be looked at/tested by doctors of
different specialisation.

I took a relative of mine for surgery there (Cataract lens + glaucoma)
for both eyes. The first time it cost Rs 11,500(7 days AC room + cost
of surgery + lens), a year and half later Rs 16,500 for the same for
the 2nd eye.

2 things
a) go early in the morning, say 6.30-7.00 to avoid crowds & heat.
you'll still come out at 11.30-13.00 hours depending on the state of
your eye.

b) Take a companion, once your eyes are dilated by the drops, it'll
remain so for a day or two, making it difficult to navigate the
streets

BTW, I strongly suggest you read up about the laser treatment before doing it; I believe depending upon ethnicity, the chances of corrective treatment vary in their success. This is not about the integrity of the doctors but about the validity of the laser treatment itself.

Auntyji

You can also try Agarwal Eye Hospital in Madras. Their website is http://www.dragarwal.com/
As far as I know, the place is run by a family of opthalmologists...I wonder whether anyone in that family had any other career choice! I used to go there for regular visits and I thought they were good, but I can't personally comment on complicated procedures.

A friend of mine had the laser treatment done at Agarwal. He has had no problems so far. He experienced extreme discomfort (burning) in his eyes for a few days but this went away. I don't have any information about costs, sorry.

I would also urge you to read as much as you can about laser treatment before making any decisions. I don't know if there are enough longitudinal studies regarding its success or problems that may occur after a while.

Krishnika

I had laser surgery done 5 1/2 years ago at Duke University. I was extremely near-sighted before then, around -9.5. I had to get a touch up surgery 2 years later, and although it's wonderful to wake up in the morning or go swimming and not be blind, I haven't made it to 20/20. I've had problems with fluctuation of vision, and continue to do so. Some days, when the sun is very bright and the humidity is low I can see very sharply, but on most days it's a bit blurry. And some times I can go for long stretches with very poor vision, not being able to read street signs properly, etc. I had my vision checked last year and it was around -1 in both eyes with still a bit of astigmatism in one eye.
Basically I'm glad I had the surgery, but I'm afraid in the very near future I will be obliged to give in and go for a pair of glasses and contact lenses again, even though it feels like the prescription would change from week to week.
My sister is a general doctor who's eyes are worse than mine used to be, and she doesn't want the surgery.
Just some thoughts for you, don't want to either encourage or discourage the procedure.

vikasrawat

Hi Cat Cat,

I can actually plan a trip for you in which you can get the laser treatment done for your eyes from a reputed hospital and can see Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders on earth, all for approximately AUD 3000.(All Inclusive)

Sounds good? Isin't it?

Cheers!!

Vikas

Auntyji

Krishnika, I am glad I read your post. My ophthalmologist occasionally asks me if i want to get the laser treatment done, but I have always wondered about those people who had mixed reactions to it. It seems to have reduced your prescription very much, but as you say, you may need to eventually use contacts/glasses, though of course for a much lower prescription. I think that's important to know when going into it.

samir_brd

My wife is an ophthalmologist, Dr. Rupal Shah, whose speciality is laser vision correction. She practices at Mumbai, at the LaseRx clinic, and at Vadodara, at the New Vision Laser Centers. She has treated tens of thousands of eyes. She also uses the latest lasers from Carl Zeiss, including wavefront customized treatments.

I think LASIK is very safe, and the technology has really evolved in recent years, but it is best that you schedule a consultation during your visit to India, and understand the prognosis for your particular eyes.

My wife's email is rupal@newvisionindia.com. The Website is www.newvisionindia.com

Sorry for a rather personal plug, but I geniunely believe that laser vision correction is a very good thing for those who are short sighted.

Regards
Samir Shah

samir_brd

I forgot to mention the cost.

Depending on whether you go for regular or customized treatment, the cost will vary between 30000 to 40000 Rs. for two eyes.

Regards
Samir Shah

rangss

Golly! We have touts amongst us!

__________________
...and I took the road less travelled.

vikasrawat

Well that was just to indicate the approximate expenses and the benifts of visting India and getting the surgery done here.

A lot of my friends who are settled abroad do this.

I never said "I CAN ARRANGE", I said "I CAN PLAN" there's a lot of difference.

And anyway there's a lot for me to and this tout business is not my cup of tea...

Anna ... kAsu illae vennum... taru udevi maTTum...

apmk

The cost of operations at the Agarwal Group of hospitals is high compared to other hospitals(atleast 20% more). They are a family of opthamologists... However, the experience of one of my relatives has been pretty bad and personally I would not advice anyone to go there. Shankar Nethralaya at Chennai is the best bet if u intend to travel to South India.

CatCat

Thanks everyone for your tip's and advice..
I won't be rushing into anything ...

Thanks again

CatCat

randomviolins

Having surgery done overseas can save quite a bit of money, but it may cost you the sacrifice of certain legal rights. A patient in the US who suffers an injury as a consequence of medical negligence by an American doctor is much more likely to be able to win a malpractice lawsuit (or negotiate a large settlement) than if the same patient has the same injury under the care of a doctor overseas.

As for laser eye surgery itself, I underwent lasik for treatment of near-sightedness myself approximately 7 years ago, and went from about -4.5 to nearly 20/20 vision in my right eye. I had originally intended to have both eyes done, but there was a problem performing the incision for my left eye (the blade seemed to abrade the surface of the cornea rather than form a flap), so I never had the laser surgery on that side. Since that time, I have been prone to recurrent corneal abrasions in the left eye, such that I can't wear contact lenses in that eye at all and when the humidity gets too low overnight I can wake up with an excruciatingly painful corneal erosion the next morning. I have found that I haven't really needed to have the left eye lasered though because my right eye is dominant and I can function by using it alone.

However, I do have problems seeing clearly in low-light settings with my right eye (the lasik-treated eye), like in a dark theater or for driving at night. There are haloes and starburst patterns around bright lights (such as from headlights of oncoming cars). I can still drive because I can put glasses on and still get normal, clear 20/20 vision with the left (un-lasered) eye. These are known side effects of the procedure that are fortunately rare, but, unfortunately for me, there is as yet no satisfactory treatment. (I'm a doctor myself and had the treatment performed by one of the most experienced ophthalmologic surgeons around.)