All refractive surgery and treatment is carried out in the Laser Suite on the Cumberlege Wing of Moorfields Eye Hospital. This is situated in the main Moorfields site on City Road.

Later this year, we will be opening a brand new refractive service wing for your outpatient appointments, further enhancing our levels of service and care.

No, the LASIK procedure is relatively painless. Although you will be awake during the surgery, your eye will be completely anaesthetised with eye drops. There may be some irriation when the anaesthetic wears off. This typically only lasts for 3 - 4 hours. Discomfort lasts 3 - 4 days after surface laser procedures (PRK, LASEK and EpiLASIK) but drops are prescribed to help with this.

Visual recovery is also a little slower. While functional, it takes 3 - 4 days to fully recover.

Most patients only report mild discomfort after RLE and ICL surgery. This is usually brief and easily relieved by mild painkillers such as paracetemol.

This depends on your job and the environment you work in. Office work is usually possible the day after LASIK, and work will not damage your eyes provided that you are able to administer your after care drops on time. Surface laser procedures (PRK, LASEK and EpiLASIK) typically require a week off work. Implant based procedures (RLE and ICL implantation) usually require about 3 days for the vision to stabilise.

Playing sports (apart from contact sports) is safe after one week, and patients can fly within a few days. We would advise you to refrain from playing any contact sports or swimming for one month.

Patients normally have both eyes treated on the same day when undergoing laser procedures. For implant-based surgery, there should usually be at least a week between surgery for each eye.

Around a third of patients still require glasses for some distance purposes (for example, night driving) after LASIK.

A reasonable aim for refractive surgery is to attain distance vision at the normal level for a non-spectacle wearer. This should allow you to drive, socialise, watch television and play sport without glasses, but some patients still prefer spectacles for a limited range of activities such as night driving. Repeat treatment is performed in around 5% of patients to improve upon the initial result, and is more common where the initial treatment was for a high correction.

Presbyopia (the natural weakening of the 'focussing' muscles in the eye which occurs in people over the age of 45) is not corrected by laser or implant based surgery. But compromise strategies, in which one eye is focussed primarily for good distance vision and the other is focussed are arms length, are often very helpful in minimising spectacle dependence for near vision in later life.

The approximate costs of treatment are as follows:

• Initial consultation £90 - £175
• PTK from £1000 per eye
• LASIK from £1400 per eye
• LASEK from £1300 per eye
• Wavefront LASIK from £1700 per eye.

Follow-up consultations are included in the above fees.

If you would like to make an appointment or would like further information, please contact our business office.