Eye pain after YAG laser capsulotomy

Yes, I had YAG laser capsulotomy in my left eye recently but, fortunately, no subsequent pain or complications.

If the surface of your cornea is scratched, then that is almost certainly nothing to do with the capsulotomy as the laser is focused on the back of the capsule behind the lens, nowhere near the surface.

In my opinion (and I'm no expert!) surface scratches are more likely to have occurred due to foreign matter on the surface of your eye which easily happens from such things as a dusty atmosphere.

I dont know either but I looked up scratch and it was under lens pitting : "This happens if the laser beam causes scratches on the artificial lens implant whilst being focused on the thickened capsule. This is only a problem should the lens pitting occur directly on the visual axis (in the line of your vision)."

I'm sorry to hear that this happened and I'm not familiar with this though I've heard of YAG ... which type of eye doc does YAG, the one who did the cataract surgery or a retina surgeon?

Can they do anything for your pain?

Hi Jen:)

I had a pain free YAG as far as the procedure went, but did notice the "splinter effect "occasionally afterward - after I had accidentally bumped my eye with the tip of the eye dropper!:) It's gone now, only lasted a few days. I do notice the LE is more sensitive to light than the RE, occasionally causing pain from headlights if I forget to wear my turquoise glasses while driving.

I used to get corneal scratches sometimes from dust caught under my contacts before. They always healed within a few days. I wouldn't worry about it too much. The cornea is magnificently self-healing!

Corneal abrasion is caused by a scratch to the outer clear surface of your eye, and yes, they hurt a lot. The also heal very quickly..if it lingers for more than a couple days more, get re-checked to make sure it hasn't developed into a small ulcer. Corneal ulcers need antibiotic drops and to be followed closely to ensure they improve.

Obviously the laser has to pass through the cornea to reach the capsule, and so whether adjustment of the intensity can result in some damage to the cornea, I don't know. I guess it's theoretically possible, but I know nothing about how lasers work. They do sometimes result in pitting of the IOL, so perhaps they could result in corneal injury too. It's understandable that you would assume that the two are connected, so I don't think you're crazy for wondering.

I had a corneal abrasion in my post-op course after my first IOL placement. I was trying dilator drops for dysphotopsias and they were generally uncomfortable, and then suddenly I had really really bad pain and copious eye watering. I knew it was just like a corneal abrasion but literally there was no reason...I had not had a foreign body in there, not scratched it that I was aware of. It felt like it was associated with the eye drops, even though that isn't really logical, and I stopped those once and for all.

The good part is that even if the laser caused your corneal abrasions, there's nothing more to do about it: they will almost certainly heal in the next day or two.

Thank you for all your input and support, much appreciated!

After using anti-biotic drops for a few days, my eye pain has largely subsided. However, the YAG procedure has resulted in big starbursts and floaters in both of my eyes. Anyone has experienced these symptoms and how long does it take for them to settle?

It seems every situation is possibly different. YAG laser was done on both my eyes a few months ago. There were no floaters, which is unusual. There were halos/glare, and maybe some minor starbursts, from my trifocals, but no obvious change after the operation.

Hope your symptoms go away soon.

I had a similar experience. Three hours post surgery I experienced eye pain which increased over the next two hours. The pain was worst when I blinked. I called the doctor, who said it sounded like the "contact lens" used to focus the laser had damaged the cornea. He said that happens sometimes. He prescribed antibiotic cream. After a bad night, it is getting better.