A study examining the potential impact on quality of life from LASIK surgery has been launched to determine the percentage of patients with significant quality of life problems post surgery.
The results of the project is intended to identify factors that can affect the quality of life following LASIK and potentially reduce the risk of adverse effects.
Conducted by the U.S Food and Drug Administration, the U.S National Eye Institute and the U.S Department of Defence, the study is composed of three phases. The first which began in July 2009 involves a web-based questionnaire assessing patient reported outcomes. The second will evaluate the satisfaction of servicemen treated at America's Navy Refractive Surgery Centre. The third phase, due to end in 2012, will be a nationwide clinical trial studying the impact of the procedure on quality of life of the general American population.
Optician's 9th annual survey of refractive surgery clinics in the UK and Ireland is currently underway. The results will be published in the November 27 issue.