AFTER SURGERY

Right after surgery you are allowed to stand up. Do not touch the eye you’ve been operated on! Your vision will be impaired during the day of the surgery but will recover soon. After the anaesthesia wears off, you may experience an itching sensation in the eye, and the eye may water. The vision gets blurry for a short time.

After surgery a patient is free to go home. It is advisable to sit or stand up. You can also watch TV or move around. The vision in the eye operated on will start improving after a night’s sleep. It is not necessary to use eye drops during the day of the surgery. In case of need, you can use over-the-counter painkillers.

NEXT MORNING

Remove the gound and small clots that have gathered on your eyelids with a cotton ball moistened in boiled water. You should also start applying the eye drops for which you will get a prescription when leaving the clinic. Apply one drop at a time (if you should apply more than one drop, do not worry, the excessive medication will just flow out and leave your eye unharmed).

NB! During the first week after the surgery apply the drops 5 times, during the second week 4 times, during the third week 3 times, during the fourth week 2 times and during the fifth week once a day.

If you used drops intended to decrease eye pressure before having surgery, you should continue using them after the surgery.

In the morning after the surgery, your vision should be better than it was before the procedure. Colours will seem bright, with a slightly blue tinge. Many patients also see black bits floating in front of their eyes. During the first week following the surgery bright sunshine also tends to irritate the eye. Feel free to use sunglasses.

DURING THE FIRST WEEK AFTER THE SURGERY

Whenever necessary, clean the eye with cotton balls and boiled water. Avoid rubbing the eye!

It is normal for the pupil to be dilated and the white of the eye to be slightly red. The pupil will begin functioning normally within a week and the redness of the white of the eye (if it occurs) will disappear in a week or two.

You can sleep in any position, watch TV and do chores in the kitchen right away. You are free to wash yourself (including your hair). During the first post-surgery week it is not advisable to go to hot saunas or party hard. You can have one shot (and no more!) of brandy after getting home from the surgery.
Do not forget to apply eye drops five times a day during the first week.

DURING THE SECOND WEEK

You can get back to your usual life and, quite probably, end your sick leave.

Make sure to apply eye drops four times a day during the second week.

DURING THE THIRD WEEK

Use eye drops three times a day.

DURING THE FOURTH WEEK

Use eye drops twice a day.

DURING THE FIFTH WEEK

The final clarity of vision will be achieved within a month after the surgery. This is also the time when new glasses may be prescribed, if necessary. After the refractive lens exchange (lens replacement surgery) performed for getting rid of glasses, very few patients need glasses any more.

Use eye drops once a day during the fifth week.

DURING THE SIXTH WEEK

As a rule, eye drops are no longer needed during the sixth week.

You may experience slight itching sensation and discomfort from time to time in the eye during 0,5–1 years after the surgery.

POST-SURGERY CHECK-UPS

The need for check-ups is determined by the doctor after the surgery.