Why choose Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center for eye care in Richmond Virginia?

As is discussed in How to Choose a LASIK Surgeon there are four fundamentals of a real LASIK expert. Dr. Kenneth Lipstock is just such a Richmond LASIK surgeon. He fulfills each of the four requirements. Three out of four would not be sufficient, but find someone who has all four and you've found the real deal. These four requirements are:

A well trained surgeon
An experienced surgeon
A surgeon that cares enough to pay very close attention to his or her patients before, during and after surgery and thereby screens out poor candidates and modifies unexpected outcomes to obtain an excellent result.
State of the art laser technology

Training:

Dr. Luis Ruiz of South America invented the microsurgical instrument that made LASIK possible. Years ago he helped train the refractive surgery leaders of the world that in turn went on to teach ophthalmologists LASIK. Dr. Lipstock has the unique distinction of training abroad for years with Dr. Ruiz. In fact he has the honor of being the only American ever being allowed to operate at the world famous Ruiz Center. Dr. Ruiz and Dr. Lipstock subsequently became partners in cofounding the International Center for Refractive Surgery in the Caribbean for training surgeons in advanced LASIK techniques before they were available in the U.S.

Experience:

Dr. Lipstock has been performing LASIK since 1995. He was the first surgeon to perform the procedure in Virginia and one of the first in the U.S. He has operated on patients from all over the U.S. and Canada. He has performed thousands of LASIK procedures carefully examining and following each and every patient himself before and after surgery.

Attention to Detail:

You can be assured that Dr. Lipstock himself actively participates in the meticulous evaluation of your eyes both before and after surgery. Other highly skilled technicians may be involved in your care as well, but there is no substitute for Dr. Lipstock's in depth knowledge for your pre and postoperative care.

Technology:

Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center has chosen the Intralase femtosecond laser for computer controlled customized flap creation and combined this with the newest 6th generation VISX S4 excimer laser perform LASIK. Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center is proud to continue to lead the way for LASIK in Virginia. Dr. Lipstock was the first local Richmond surgeon to offer a completely BLADE FREE ALL LASER LASIK PROCEDURE.

LASIK consists of two steps. Step one consists of creating a thin corneal flap which is folded back. Step two consists of changing the shape of the underlying corneal tissue using a sophisticated excimer laser.

Creating the thin corneal flap: Dr. Lipstock, being personally trained by Dr. Ruiz who invented the handheld instrument that created the flap, is very skilled at traditional LASIK. This instrument is gear driven and has a rapidly oscillating surgical blade. With this basic technology very elegant flaps were usually made. In a skilled surgeon's hands few complications were seen, but occasionally a serious complication could occur. Now LASIK has taken a giant leap forward with the invention of the Intralase laser that creates the flap. This high speed laser technology allows the surgeon to truly customize the procedure by precisely crafting a flap of predictable thickness, diameter, and location for each patient. While it significantly increases the safety of the procedure, it simultaneously enables patients to obtain better, clearer vision in a shorter period of time.
Changing the shape of the underlying corneal tissue: Dr. Lipstock uses the VISX S4 excimer laser for step two. VISX is a company created by the original researchers in excimer laser technology for eye surgery. VISX has been the gold standard in the U.S. for years, and with its superlative research team it has maintained its position as an innovator and quality excimer laser manufacturer. In fact, over two-thirds of all U.S. LASIK surgeons have chosen the VISX laser to use as thier laser of choice. And in 2003 VISX did it again, introducing CUSTOM VUE with WaveScan technology. CUSTOM VUE technology along with the introduction of the IntraLase laser are undoubtebly the greatest advancements in laser vision correction in the past decade. It significantly increases both accuracy and safety by measuring all of the optical abberations in the eye and eliminating them. VISX CUSTOM VUE treats more than just nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. In addition it treats individual unique imperfections in your eye that could never even be measured prior to its introduction. Now the majority of patients can actuallly see better than they did with their glasses.

Are annoying dilating drops required? VISX: NO. Ladar Vision: YES.

FDA Custom LASIK clinical study results:
Percent of patients seeing 20/20 or better:

Visx: 98%
Ladar Vision: 79.7%

Accuracy:

At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center over 99% of our patients see clearly without eye glasses or contacts.

Safety:

At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center we have not had one serious complication (0%) on our LASIK patients. Mild complications that led to a mild decrease in best corrected vision (20/25 or 20/30) are less than 1 tenth of 1 percent * (less than 1 in a thousand.) Mild complications that led to slower recovery but no loss of vision have been about 1 percent. Now with VISX Custom Vue technology combined with IntraLase femtosecond laser technology these rare occurences are becoming significantly less. LASIK at Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center has entered a new era of enhanced reliability, safety and accuracy.

Enhancement Rate:

The great thing about LASIK is that we are able to fine-tune the initial results. A repeat procedure is called an enhancement. At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center the enhancement rate is about 5%. The National average for enhancement procedures is about 10-15%. This means about 95% of our patients see clearly after one LASIK surgery. With those who wanted an enhancement procedure and received one included then over 99% of our patients end up seeing clearly without eyeglasses after LASIK! And now with Custom LASIK the majority of patients end up seeing even better than 20/20!!

Multifocus Correcton for Patients over 40:

LASIK can be performed on patients beginning at about age 18 and up to about age 80 (LASIK can be performed even after cataract surgery to help eliminate the need for eyeglasses). Most patients in the U.S. who are over age 40 and have LASIK are advised by their LASIK surgeon to be corrected fully for distance vision in both eyes; they thereby lose their ability to see up close. Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center is uniquely different from other laser centers in this regard. We use a multi-focus laser correction technique on 99% of our patients over 40, known as monovision, and this enables them to see great at distance vision while at the same time preserving a significant amount of their natural ability to see up close.

Important Intangibles:

At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center you'll quickly learn to appreciate the friendliness and warmth of all staff members.
At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center we believe that good patient education minimizes unrealistic fears. We take the time to explain things so all of your questions are answered.
At Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center Dr. Lipstock is the ONLY surgeon. He will examine you before and after surgery and nobody else will be operating on you.

* This excludes patients who were referred to Lipstock LASIK & Cataract Center after having had a bad outcome at another surgical center.