Does laser eye surgery hurt?

One of the most common questions we get asked is ‘Does laser eye surgery hurt?’ The answer is no. The procedure is not painful as you will have some anaesthetic drops to numb your eyes. These work very quickly, in less than 5 seconds, and so there is no need to wait to be sure they have taken effect. They work on everyone, every time, which is very reassuring.

No injections or other kinds of anaesthesia are required.

Most patients are mildly anxious on the day of the procedure, and this is completely normal. As Focus surgeons have performed more than 30,000 treatments, we are very experienced at relaxing patients and reassuring you as the treatment progresses (only eight or nine minutes for both eyes).

We like patients to be fully awake and alert during treatment, so that you can easily see the blinking green light, which will ask you to focus on as the correction progresses. Very occasionally, perhaps once or twice a year, the patient is sufficiently anxious that we prescribe a mild anti-anxiety drug prior to surgery. However, most patients are able to manage perfectly well without.

The most common reaction from people is that the whole thing is far less than they had imagined, and they quickly relax as treatment progresses. It is often considered as less than a dental hygiene visit.

Your vision during the procedure is blurred, so you will not have any clear view of what is happening, just shapes and movement and the bright light from the operating microscope.

Treatment takes approximately 4 minutes per eye and so the whole process is complete in eight or nine minutes.