Reported Eye Infections from LASIK Surgery Raise Safety Concerns in Japan

March 6, 2009

The Daily Yomiuri Online is reporting public concern about the safety of Lasik refractive laser eye surgery has grown in Japan after it was revealed that 67 patients who underwent the procedure at the Ginza Ganka eye clinic in Tokyo developed corneitis or conjunctivitis after having the surgery.

But Japanese eye surgeons say this was an isolated situation. Tsukuba University Professor Tetsuro Oshika, who also serves as the chairman of the Japanese Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, was quoted as stating that “only one in 5,000 people gets a serious infection as a result of Lasik surgery,” and that the infections reported from surgeries performed at the Ginza Ganka clinic were a result of problematic hygiene management.

The article also cites Professor Hiroko Bissen-Miyajima, who conducts about 300 Lasik surgeries a year at Tokyo Dental College Suidobashi Hospital, who said the surgery is safe if patients’ eyes have been properly examined and they are operated on correctly.

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One Response to “Reported Eye Infections from LASIK Surgery Raise Safety Concerns in Japan”

  • Dr. Weitzner

    infection is really rare- that shouldnt be an obstacle to lasik. its the halos, dryness and night vision issues that concern me. anyway, im presbyopic, and my -1.50 refraction is a godsend, as i work and read all day without glasses.