Some patients have noticed slight pressure during the procedure, but the eye is completely numbed during the procedure. Although many patients have anxiety before the procedure, they very typically feel after the procedure that they really had nothing to fear. The procedure takes approximately less than 5 minutes per eye. Plan to be at the USC Doheny Refractive Laser Center for approximately one hour for testing and a post-procedure exam. This depends on your job.
Most patients choose to return to work the day after the procedure.
Some choose to take an extra day off. Laser vision correction is a permanent procedure. Ten to eleven years of follow-up studies show very good stability. There are a few cases in which a slight regression of the correction occur within the first few months. These persons can be corrected by an enhancement procedure, which is done free of charge.