LASIK EYE SURGERY
LASER EYE TREATMENT

The government's clinical watchdog The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), has refused to authorise that laser eye treatment be provided on the National Health Service because of concerns over its long-term safety for patients. Over 100,000 people a year in Britain have LASIK eye surgery to correct myopia and many companies indicate that there, are no known long-term side effects or complications however the report by National Institute for Clinical Excellence published in 2004 that there are concerns about the procedure's safety in the long term.

The Medical Defence Union which is the UK’s largest insurer for the medical profession has reported a doubling in the number of claims against clinics offering laser eye surgery since 1998 and the American Journal of Ophthalmology said the failure rate for eye surgery was one in 10, not the one in 1,000 figure widely advertised. The Consumers' Association has warned that people having surgery are "gambling with their sight" and the Advertising Standard Authority has censured medical practitioners for giving the impression that anyone having laser eye treatment would no longer require glasses or contact lenses and that complications with the operation had only arisen in America.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists and the US Food and Drug Administration have identified more than 20 possible complications of the process and it is known that vision gets considerably worse in some people after LASIK Eye surgery.

If you would like free legal advice on medical negligence compensation just complete the contact form and a specialist solicitor who is a member of The Law Society panel of clinical negligence experts will phone you without obligation. Legal Aid is still available for clinical negligence claims however if you do not qualify for Legal Aid then you may be able to make your claim using the no win no fee scheme.