Quick Look at PRK Recovery Timeline

You’ve finally reached the point of frustration where you can no longer deal with the annoying hassle of putting in contacts every morning, dry eyes throughout the day or wondering where you put your glasses. Laser eye surgery has helped thousands of individuals like yourself free themselves from the inconvenience of poor vision. While there are a few laser eye surgery options available today, PRK is one of the more popular ones that offer advantages compared to the others.

One of the biggest deciding factors that most individuals inquire about is the recovery time after the procedure. While PRK takes a little while longer to recover compared to LASIK or other procedures due to the nature of the surgery, PRK does not require a flap in the outer cornea to reshape and correct for vision. Typically, individuals who do not make good candidates for LASIK due to thin corneas will be better suited for PRK. The general PRK recovery timeline looks like this:

First Few Days: this is viewed as the most important period of the recovery process because how the healing process begins will have a huge influence on the remainder of the recovery. Minor pain, scratchiness, and discomfort are very common but it is imperative to not rub or scratch your eyes as that will complicate the healing. Following the prescribed medication schedule of eye drops is crucial. Your surgeon will want to see you shortly after your procedure to make sure things went smoothly and how the healing process has begun.

Weeks After: sensitivity to light, poor night vision and halo’s around lights are also very common during the recovery process as your eyes continue to heal. The first month is when patients experience the largest improvement in vision and most experience significant improvement after the first week. During the weeks and months following your PRK procedure, your doctor will schedule a series of checkup appointments to make sure that your healing is right on track.

Months After: the sixth-month mark is the milestone in the recovery process that should resolve all remaining recovery symptoms (most experience clear, corrected vision much sooner). Your surgeon may still want to see you (less frequently) just to ensure that you are completely satisfied with your results.

(This is a brief overview of the typical timeline for PRK surgery recovery, always consult with your eye doctor)

The most important aspect of recovering from PRK is having the best surgeon perform the procedure. Our award-winning staff at Diamond Vision have performed thousands of successful PRK procedures and our track record extremely satisfied patients speak for itself. To learn more about the different laser eye surgery options and to schedule a free consultation, visit our Atlanta LASIK Eye Surgery Center.