Preparing for an operation

Postoperatieve controles

These appointments take place at Dr. Vryghem’s private practice address depending on the consultation schedule.

Post-op examination 3rd day :
Post-op examination 1st week : 
Post-op examination 1st month :

Procedure

One week before surgery:

  • Remove your soft contact lenses.
  • Hard or oxygen-permeable contact lenses must be removed at least 3 weeks in advance, especially if you have been wearing them for a long time.

One day before surgery :

  • Obtain the following medication which will have been prescribed during the pre-operative examination: Dafalgan Codeine (tranquiliser), Trafloxal collyre (anti-inflammatory), Indocollyre (pain killer),   Systane and hylo-gel(artificial tears) , FML and huil de lin.
  • No mascara.
  • Contact the driver who is to bring you.

On the day fixed for the surgery :

  • No mascara, cosmetics or perfume.
  • 1/2 hour before your appointment : (this is your time of arrival) : take 1 Dafalgan Codeine tablet to calm you. It may make you feel sleepy.
  • Bring with you: Indocollyre, Trafloxal collyre and Systane and Oxyal / Hyal-Drop (do not open the bottles).
  • The examination and the surgery will take approximately 1 hour. If there is a delay in Dr. Vryghem’s operation list your surgery time may be retarded.

During surgery:

The anaesthesia consists of three drops a few minutes before surgery. The ophthalmologist will explain everything to you carefully : expect no surprises !

Your eye will be kept open by an eyelid-speculum to prevent you from blinking.
The surgeon places a metal ring onto your eye that will be filled with an alcohol solution. 
After a few seconds, the alcohol solution will be absorbed and the epithelium will be scrapped.
The cornea will be rinsed to remove eventual impurities and will be dried.
The riboflavin solution (vitamin B2) is applied onto the cornea during 30 minutes( 1drop every 30 seconds).
Next, the cornea will be irradiated during 10 minutes with UV light (365 nm).
Now you are ready for the ultra-violet treatment. As of this moment, you will have to look straight into the ultra-violet light for 10 minutes. Your eye will be irrigated abundantly  with riboflavin.

After surgery:

Drops must be used as indicated below :

From the day on which the surgery takes place :

  • Trafloxal collyre (anti-inflammatory): 4 times per day during the week following surgery.
  • Indocollyre (pain killer): as required, if you feel any sensation of sand or burning in the eye(s).

From the day aftrer surgery you will have to add :

  • Systane (artificial tears): up to 8 times per day, especially during the first week following surgery. If you still feel dryness, please continue with Oxyal / Hyal-Drop.
  • Huil de lin : 2 gellules a day, one in the morning, one in the evening with the meal.

When you apply the drops you must take care not to touch the eyeball : pull the lower eyelid downwards while looking up and then insert the drop. Then you can close your eye.

 

  • The contact lens will stay on your eye for 3 days.   During this time you are not yet functional: the view will remain blurry, the eye can be painfull and red.   After 3 days the contact lens is removed during the post-operative examination and the view will brighten slowly.   The pain and the redness will take off.   The vieuw clears in within one week but the quality of the view will increase within 1-2 months after surgery.
  • After 3 days, when the bandage contact lens has been removed, you start applying fml:
    3 times a day 1 drop during the first week
    2 times a day 1 drop during the second week
    1 time a day 1 drop during the third week
  • If you feel any serious pain or are worried, contact the surgeon.
  • Do not schedule any important or sporting activities for the next few days.
  • During the first 10 days after surgery : no make-up
  • During the first 3 weeks : no swimming !
  • During 6 months: avoid UV radiation (when you go in bright sunlight, use sun glasses)

If only one eye has had surgery, be aware if you have to drive because your depth perception is impaired until such time as the other eye has been treated. Take careful note of the post-operative controls to be done by your ophthalmologist on the third and the first week after surgery. The final results will be evaluated by using topographies in order to check whether the cornea is being stable. In a second phase it will be possible for certain patients to be treated for myopia and astigmatism by means of the PRK treatment guided by topographies or by the implantation of an intra-ocular toric Artisan lens implant.

More about Ultra Violet Crosslinking

The operation
Preparing for an operation

If you want more information, or would like to make an appointment:
Contact us or call 0032 (0)2 741 69 99