this post was submitted on 05 Jun 2025
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Yes, 99% safe. Be very scared :p
99% safe isn't that safe, it just means that out of every hundred customer one will be injured.
So, looking at this page:
https://www.mariettaeye.com/eye-care-info/lasik-eye-surgery-statistics/
1700000 lasik procedures are performed every year (estimate), and to give the treatment the best possible chances (and make it easier to do the math), let's accept that it is 99% safe
This means that every year 17000 people are in some way injured by it.
That is not negligible....
It's not 99% perfect 1% absolutely obliterated. That 1% is people with itchy or dry eyes for a bit afterwards. But yes, I could've pointed that out.
Heck, the 1% of the covid vaccine included people complaining they had to poop the next day :p
I see your point, but when you consider that eyeglasses have a 100% guarantee to not damage your eyes directly, that one percent risk becomes a huge extra risk.
I mean, I've had my glasses break and scratch my cornea... The likelihood of that happening is probably less than 1%, but it's definitely not 0%
That is why I specified "directly", accidents happen, but the glasses won't dammage your eyes just by wearing them
This "directly" distinction you're making is not very relevant.
Usually "direct" would mean that without it, it wouldn't have happened. Yes, whatever broke the glasses would've happened without the glasses as well, but it likely wouldn't have resulted in a scratched cornea. So yes, the scratched cornea is a direct effect of having worn glasses.
Eh, fair I guess, but I maintain that glasses are 100% safe when you try them out, LASIK is way more dangerous during the treatment phase even at a 99% safety rating
Lots of scary side effects to many medications people take as well. It all depends on the probabilities.
And benefits. Some cancer treatments include common symptoms like hair loss. What would you choose?
Glasses are barely an inconvenience; you can't compare them to cancer. A 1% drop rate on making my life significantly worse is terrible odds, especially given the monetary cost.
Can’t compare it with cancer, but calling it barely an inconvenience is also a bit rich in my experience.
Also the 1% chance is pulled out of someone’s arse isn’t it? Did anyone here look up actual numbers for long term detrimental effects?
It's an extreme example where the decision is easy: death vs hair loss.
When it comes to more subtle examples: glasses vs < 1% risk of blindness, that's a decision that people will have more different opinions on.