In simple and short, no laser surgery is painful. No matter it is a PRK surgery or Lasik surgery, one does not experience any pain during the surgical procedure. It is because of the fact that anesthetic eye drops are placed in the eye, before the procedure starts. There may be a small discomfort or small fear, as the procedure deals with the eyes, the most sensitive organs in the body.
After the Procedure
Once the procedure is performed the affect of anesthetic medication will be gone and the effect of the surgery remains. There can be a fear of pain after the surgery, however, according to the reports of the patients, who have gone through the surgery indicate that there is no or mild discomfort felt. The discomfort or mild pain is only for the next day of the surgery.
Pain During Recovery
Recovery time for the PRK is a bit longer and during this period, some kind of discomfort or soreness is possible and it is quite tolerable. The discomfort can be easily managed with the pain relievers prescribed to use post surgery. The soreness is visible and noticeable only during the first one two weeks and abates with time.
Pain Reduction
Oral pain agents can be used to reduce the pain. Antiseizure medication is preferred by many ophthalmologists apart fromt eh regular topical approaches, like cold saline, soft contacts, anesthetics, ice and NSAIDs. Pain management is well managed with pregabalin and gabapentin. Both these medications give similar results. According to the study and reports by American Journal of Ophthalmology, both these medications work the same way, as per the reports collected from the patients. These medications have to be used only upon recommendation of the surgeon, since the jury still has to ensure the effectiveness of this medication.
There is nothing to worry about the pain or discomfort after the PRK procedure as it is quite temporary and can be managed easily with enough medication. Apart from that small changes in the lifestyle, like listening to music spending good time with the family and friends can make the pain to be unnoticeable.