With my eyes at -2.75 and still recovering from a lower leg injury,I have some time befor I look to apply for PRMC.Im condsidering laser surgey,but am looking for some advice from anyone who has had it done and continued to pass the medical.
Ive done a search and have not found a post from anyone with first hand experience on this.I will be calling AFCO on monday to see what they have to say.
Also,would I need to tell the doctors about it for them to know about it?
Thank you.
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Anyone had lasik done?
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Mr Mojo Risin
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The Times had an article on this last week:
April 09, 2005
Laser surgery helps bionic soldiers to see at night
By Laura Peek
ELITE soldiers and fighter pilots are undergoing surgery at Britain’s leading eye hospital to help them to see in the dark, The Times has learnt.
A leading surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London is operating on Special Forces soldiers and combat pilots to enhance their night vision. Soldiers joke that the operation is turning them into a new breed of “bionic” fighters.
“Quite frankly, they are,” said Julian Stevens, who has performed about 50 night vision treatments on military patients. “I would expect them to be in the top 1 or 2 per cent of human vision.”
This is the cutting edge of laser eye surgery and one test of the operation’s success is if soldiers can see two stars in the Plough that are so close together that they normally appear as one without a telescope.
Soldiers about to deploy to Iraq and other combat zones are given priority treatment and the operation has proved so successful that foreign air forces have started to send combat aviators to Moorfields for treatment.
“I treated one fighter pilot who lands on carriers,” Mr Stevens said yesterday. “He had good vision but his night landings were not good so he had treatment to enhance his night vision.” Without surgery the pilot would have been taken off combat duties, Mr Stevens added.
Soldiers often have laser surgery to correct poor eyesight because grime and lack of hygiene facilities make contact lenses impractical in war zones and many glasses break or fog up when servicemen are jumping out of aircraft, diving underwater or crawling through dirt and sand.
The Moorfields treatment involves removing irregularities from the periphery of the cornea as well as the centre. Some men with perfect day vision are opting to have the treatment simply to help them to see better in the dark.
Night vision treatment has become possible thanks to advances in laser eye surgery. The eye’s surface can be mapped in far greater detail and changes made with greater precision.
The basic laser eye operation involves sculpting the shape of the cornea to create a new curve that provides the best possible focus. The surgeon’s skill is critical: the better the shape, the better the vision.
Unlike the most common form of laser eye surgery, Lasik, the operation used on military personnel, Lasek, does not involve slicing a flap in the cornea because there is a slim chance that a hard blow could dislodge the flap. Boxers, police officers and those with a very active lifestyle are also advised to opt for Lasek.
The operation involves a thin layer of cells on the cornea being rolled back like a carpet rather than cut.
Mr Stevens said: “The eye is mapped in great detail with a laser scanner. The data is loaded into the computer on the laser and some anaesthetic drops are put on the surface of the eye.
“The surface cells are rolled up like a carpet and the laser pulses are applied. Then the surface cells are rolled back and a very thin medical contact lense is put in to protect the eye while it heals.” To improve night vision, extra work is done on the periphery of the cornea.
People are charged about £1,250 an eye for basic laser eye surgery. However, British soldiers and airmen are given a preferential rate for the night vision package. The Ministry of Defence is consulting Moorfields and military surgeons to see if they can be funded by the taxpayer. In the US, free basic eye surgery is used as an incentive to join up.
Complications in Britain are low but about 1 in 800 may end up with worse sight, Mr Stevens said.
So maybe it'd be OK if you went for LASEK rather than LASIK.
Craig
April 09, 2005
Laser surgery helps bionic soldiers to see at night
By Laura Peek
ELITE soldiers and fighter pilots are undergoing surgery at Britain’s leading eye hospital to help them to see in the dark, The Times has learnt.
A leading surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London is operating on Special Forces soldiers and combat pilots to enhance their night vision. Soldiers joke that the operation is turning them into a new breed of “bionic” fighters.
“Quite frankly, they are,” said Julian Stevens, who has performed about 50 night vision treatments on military patients. “I would expect them to be in the top 1 or 2 per cent of human vision.”
This is the cutting edge of laser eye surgery and one test of the operation’s success is if soldiers can see two stars in the Plough that are so close together that they normally appear as one without a telescope.
Soldiers about to deploy to Iraq and other combat zones are given priority treatment and the operation has proved so successful that foreign air forces have started to send combat aviators to Moorfields for treatment.
“I treated one fighter pilot who lands on carriers,” Mr Stevens said yesterday. “He had good vision but his night landings were not good so he had treatment to enhance his night vision.” Without surgery the pilot would have been taken off combat duties, Mr Stevens added.
Soldiers often have laser surgery to correct poor eyesight because grime and lack of hygiene facilities make contact lenses impractical in war zones and many glasses break or fog up when servicemen are jumping out of aircraft, diving underwater or crawling through dirt and sand.
The Moorfields treatment involves removing irregularities from the periphery of the cornea as well as the centre. Some men with perfect day vision are opting to have the treatment simply to help them to see better in the dark.
Night vision treatment has become possible thanks to advances in laser eye surgery. The eye’s surface can be mapped in far greater detail and changes made with greater precision.
The basic laser eye operation involves sculpting the shape of the cornea to create a new curve that provides the best possible focus. The surgeon’s skill is critical: the better the shape, the better the vision.
Unlike the most common form of laser eye surgery, Lasik, the operation used on military personnel, Lasek, does not involve slicing a flap in the cornea because there is a slim chance that a hard blow could dislodge the flap. Boxers, police officers and those with a very active lifestyle are also advised to opt for Lasek.
The operation involves a thin layer of cells on the cornea being rolled back like a carpet rather than cut.
Mr Stevens said: “The eye is mapped in great detail with a laser scanner. The data is loaded into the computer on the laser and some anaesthetic drops are put on the surface of the eye.
“The surface cells are rolled up like a carpet and the laser pulses are applied. Then the surface cells are rolled back and a very thin medical contact lense is put in to protect the eye while it heals.” To improve night vision, extra work is done on the periphery of the cornea.
People are charged about £1,250 an eye for basic laser eye surgery. However, British soldiers and airmen are given a preferential rate for the night vision package. The Ministry of Defence is consulting Moorfields and military surgeons to see if they can be funded by the taxpayer. In the US, free basic eye surgery is used as an incentive to join up.
Complications in Britain are low but about 1 in 800 may end up with worse sight, Mr Stevens said.
So maybe it'd be OK if you went for LASEK rather than LASIK.
Craig
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Mr Mojo Risin
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wildfire213
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chris78290
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i received a letter from CAAMB today explaining the rules regarding laser surgery, they WILL accept you if you have had it done, however you must first send the following information:
Visual Acuity
Distance Unaided - right/left
Distance Aided - right/left
Near Unaided - right/left
Near Aided - right/left
Refraction
Right - SPH/CYL/AXIS
Left - SPH/CYL/AXIS
Your optician can give you all these details, send them with your age and which branch you are looking to join (ie. Navy Warfare, Logistics, RM - as CAAMB deals with all Navy enquiries). The address is:
CAAMB Raven Building
HMS Sultan
Military Road
Gosport
PO12 3BY
The reason for this is there are certain extra parameters within the S3 visual category which may make you ineligable for laser surgery. Once you send this info they will come back to you saying yes you are suitable or no you're not. They accept LASIK, LASEK or PRK with a preferance for LASIK. You are then free to go ahead with your operation, notify the AFCO when you have done this and give them a copy of the report for their file, you are then required to go back after 6 months to the surgeon, he must make a report saying all is well and good, which should also be given to the AFCO, the same after 12 months, if the report you give to the AFCO after 12 months shows no complications you will be given a special eye examination by an optician chosen by the Navy, either in-service or one they use instead. Only then when he gives the go ahead which would be 13 months after the operation can you APPLY for entry, and begin the selection process. This is not hearsay, its in front of me in black and white. Hope this is of some help.
Visual Acuity
Distance Unaided - right/left
Distance Aided - right/left
Near Unaided - right/left
Near Aided - right/left
Refraction
Right - SPH/CYL/AXIS
Left - SPH/CYL/AXIS
Your optician can give you all these details, send them with your age and which branch you are looking to join (ie. Navy Warfare, Logistics, RM - as CAAMB deals with all Navy enquiries). The address is:
CAAMB Raven Building
HMS Sultan
Military Road
Gosport
PO12 3BY
The reason for this is there are certain extra parameters within the S3 visual category which may make you ineligable for laser surgery. Once you send this info they will come back to you saying yes you are suitable or no you're not. They accept LASIK, LASEK or PRK with a preferance for LASIK. You are then free to go ahead with your operation, notify the AFCO when you have done this and give them a copy of the report for their file, you are then required to go back after 6 months to the surgeon, he must make a report saying all is well and good, which should also be given to the AFCO, the same after 12 months, if the report you give to the AFCO after 12 months shows no complications you will be given a special eye examination by an optician chosen by the Navy, either in-service or one they use instead. Only then when he gives the go ahead which would be 13 months after the operation can you APPLY for entry, and begin the selection process. This is not hearsay, its in front of me in black and white. Hope this is of some help.
Some surgeons will allow you to have laser surgery under 21 as long as you are over 18 and have had a stable prescription for the past year. Try the London Vision Clinic (www.londonvisionclinic.com or info@londonvisionclinic.com), Professor Dan Reinstein.
They will send you a guide to 'Laser Surgery in the UK', and even give you a free initial screening (normally around £100) to see if you are suitable.
I'm thinking of having laser surgery myself as I wear contacts at work but find it impossible to work in the field with them. Given the advice Ive had from London Vision, Id definately go ahead with the procedure if I had the money in the bank!.
One of the guys at work who is also a Flying Maintainer had his eyes lasered a few months ago and hasn't had any problems.
As for the forces paying for it, I dont know of anybody who has been so lucky. Boob jobs are obviously much more important than something as vital as someone's sight.
Hope this helps,
Em
They will send you a guide to 'Laser Surgery in the UK', and even give you a free initial screening (normally around £100) to see if you are suitable.
I'm thinking of having laser surgery myself as I wear contacts at work but find it impossible to work in the field with them. Given the advice Ive had from London Vision, Id definately go ahead with the procedure if I had the money in the bank!.
One of the guys at work who is also a Flying Maintainer had his eyes lasered a few months ago and hasn't had any problems.
As for the forces paying for it, I dont know of anybody who has been so lucky. Boob jobs are obviously much more important than something as vital as someone's sight.
Hope this helps,
Em
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Doc
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