Laser eye surgery in Istanbul – no need to worry! – Report from Friday, November 27, 2015
Several acquaintances have had laser eye surgery in Istanbul. It became a possibility for my boyfriend this summer as well, since he was having increasing difficulty with contact lenses. I myself wanted to have it done years ago, but I’ve needed stronger glasses or contact lenses every two years. I’m now at -6 diopters. Since it’s quite possible my vision could worsen in the coming years, I’ve decided against laser eye surgery.
My boyfriend researched the topic extensively after the summer holidays and came across SwissLASIK. He received very friendly and competent advice from Mr. Kara, which is why he scheduled an appointment for a brief preliminary examination in Zurich at the end of August. To my surprise, he also made an appointment for me. At first, I wasn’t too happy about it. However, once we were there, I became increasingly curious, and all my questions were answered thoroughly. A few days later, we received the results and a recommendation for the Femto-LASIK method. Shortly afterward, we finalized the offer from SwissLASIK and were very excited about our adventure.
On Monday, October 26, 2015, we flew to Istanbul with Swiss. Our driver greeted us very warmly at the airport and took us to the Hotel Levent. Since we decided to stay in Istanbul until Friday, we opted for a larger room at the Hotel Levent. It only cost a little more and is highly recommended. The rooms are very clean and perfectly adequate. The next day, we were picked up almost on time by a hospital driver. He was a little early, which meant we had to rush from the breakfast table. But we still managed to leave in good time. We also picked up other patients from different hotels.
After some time, we arrived at Acibadem Hospital and were immediately greeted by our translator. He was very friendly and explained the entire procedure to us again. Several preliminary examinations were carried out, and finally, we discussed the results with Professor Dr. Cosar. She confirmed once more that the Femto-LASIK method was a suitable option for both me and my boyfriend.
Afterwards, we had about three hours of free time. We went to the hospital’s cafeteria and watched a few series on the iPad to distract ourselves, as I was very nervous. My friend took it a bit more casually. To my relief, I was given a calming pill. After about five minutes, I felt very relaxed and was no longer nervous about the surgery. We were both given a small bag with various eye drops and an instruction manual. Then it was time. We were given coveralls and a protective cap. I was the first one to go. First, my eyes were numbed with drops. That was very quick. Then a clamp was placed on my eyelid so I wouldn’t blink. The other eye remained free, which made things easier for me. The only thing I felt was a little pressure around the eye, but it wasn’t uncomfortable at all. After that, I was moved to the second machine. My face was covered with a sheet. I saw a small red light, which was initially blurry but became sharper. After this procedure, my eye was rinsed with water, and the process for the first eye was completed. The nurses, the doctor, and the translator were all very cheerful and kept laughing. For me, that meant everything was going smoothly, and I felt very reassured. The translator also explained things to me and encouraged me, saying it would all be over soon. The process was then repeated for the left eye. I was assured everything went perfectly. I was given a protective pair of glasses and escorted to the waiting room. There, I waited for my friend with my eyes closed. After what felt like five minutes, he came back from his surgery. Unfortunately, the translator wasn’t with him during the procedure. That was the only negative point in the whole experience. In hindsight, it wasn’t a big deal. Out of pure curiosity, I tried to open my eyes a little to see if anything had changed. Since I couldn’t see much without glasses, I was very surprised to already see quite clearly, and that was after only about 10 minutes. The translator then escorted us to Dr. Cosar’s room. She briefly examined our eyes to ensure everything had gone correctly. Fortunately, it had for both of us. Then we went back to the hotel. We couldn’t open our eyes anymore, as we felt a burning sensation and had a lot of watery eyes. Fortunately, we were allowed to take a box of tissues from the hospital, which we completely used up, as our noses were also running—just like when you cry.
After a turbulent ride (since we couldn’t see anything), we arrived at the hotel and tried to blindly find our room. We now had to apply different eye drops every hour. The burning sensation kept getting worse, so we took a painkiller (Ibuprofen – which we brought ourselves). Thanks to an audiobook, we were able to distract ourselves and eventually fell asleep. By then, it was already evening. When I took off the protective glasses for the first time, I could hardly believe my eyes. I could actually see everything again. Not perfectly sharp, but for now, it was enough for me. My friend could also see everything. We put on our sunglasses and ordered something to eat in the hotel restaurant. We had a really good meal. We had no more pain. We also had a pain-free night. The next morning, we were picked up by a chauffeur for the follow-up appointment. This also went well for me. My friend had a slight inflammation, which can unfortunately happen often. He had to use the antibiotic drops a bit more than I did—just for one week longer. The red spots on our eyes (both of us had them) were also expected to disappear quickly.
After the check-up, we took a taxi to the Blue Mosque and explored Istanbul. Istanbul is a very impressive city. We didn’t fly back home until Friday to make sure we had time to see the whole city.
We are both very happy that we had our eyes lasered. After about four weeks, we both see relatively clearly again and can do everything we used to do with vision aids. Not to forget is the change in our driving licenses. After a police check, we took care of that in the first week. An optician confirmed that we no longer need glasses. We now both have a new driving license without the code for vision aids.
Yesterday, we had our first follow-up with the referring doctor in Zurich. I was diagnosed with a small residual diopter of -0.25. However, the doctor said that we achieved a perfect result, which made me very happy. A second surgery is not necessary. My friend also has 100% vision, but his eyes are still a bit sensitive, so he needs to treat them with a gel in the evening. We have to use the prescribed eye drops a little more frequently than Dr. Cosar recommended. Our eyes are a bit dry, but that’s not uncommon. The halo effect (the bright lights in the evening) will also disappear in a few months. The eye quickly gets used to it.
It was a great decision to have the eyes lasered. It’s so much more quality of life!
Franziska Egli, Lenzburg
