After the Surgery

When you go home shortly after surgery you will be wearing a protective patch and shield over your eye. Since you won’t be able to drive, be sure to arrange a ride, or we will arrange a ride for you. You’ll be given detailed instructions before you leave the surgery center on what to expect for the remainder of the day. You may go out to eat if you like or go home to rest. The patch and shield covering your eye is to be left in place until the next day. When one eye opens, there is a tendency to open the other, but you should not open the eye under the patch as this may cause a corneal abrasion. Usually the eye will be numb for several hours after the surgery, but may begin to throb or ache during the evening following surgery. This is normal and often a mild pain reliever such as Motrin may provide relief—or just go to bed. Removing the patch is not a good idea: you should wait until the next day to have it removed in our office. Try to avoid bending or heavy lifting and try not to get the patch wet. If you must remove the patch, do not replace it.

The Next Day

The day after the surgery the patch will be removed and vision will be much better, but do not expect perfection! Remember, your eye has just had surgery and some blurring is to be expected. Usually, the eye will continue to improve over a period of 2-4 weeks or even longer, as Dr. Buzard will discuss with you, depending on your personal healing patterns and the medications that you will be using.

When you return home you will begin using your medicated eye drops four times daily as instructed by Dr. Buzard. When placing the drops in the eyes, try not to touch the lids as this may contaminate the drops. The best method is to tip the head back, roll the lower lid outwards and place the drop as shown. If you press along the side of your nose near the eye after placing the drop, it will prevent it from going down your throat. You only need to use a single drop, and while you should try to get all four sets of drops in, don’t be too concerned if you miss once or twice.

Precautions include: avoid rubbing the eyes directly, wear eye shields at night if you tend to be restless and avoid direct water in the eyes for 1-2 weeks or even longer. Finally, avoid lifting more than 20 pounds and bending, since any pressure on the stomach will increase eye pressure. While it is important to avoid direct eye trauma, it is comforting to know that the tiny "Blue Line" incision in your eye is extremely strong and was specially designed by Dr. Buzard for rapid healing.

We’re often asked about air travel after surgery, so we would like to mention that it is perfectly safe to fly the day after surgery.

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