Laundry List of questions about Dr Chynn and Laser Eye Surgery

Phillip S. sends in a list of questions for Dr. Chynn:

I have been researching corrective eye procedures on the internet.  There is a lot of information out there and I have come up with the following questions:

 How long have you been performing refractive surgery procedures? How long have you been performing these procedures at your current address?  

Over a decade; we bought space and built out the highest-tech center in NYC 2 years ago.

How many total procedures have you done for Lasik, Lasek, PRK? Please provide a number for each type.

About 4,000 LASIK, 5,000 LASEK, 1,000 epi-LASEK, 1,000 PRK (in the 90’s - no top surgeon these days is still doing PRK!)

Do you use wavefront guided software?  Are you using the latest version?

Of course; we did the very first CustomVue MonoVision surgery in NYC last year!

Could you tell me when you purchased the laser equipment that will be used for my surgery?  How often is it checked for routine maintenance?  What date was the last maintenance check-up?

It was serviced last month and calibrated daily

How many refractive procedures of the exact type you intend to use for me, with the same equipment, and the same refractive error, have you performed? 

You have to come in to be tested to answer this!

What percent of your refractive surgery patients receive Snellen uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) of 20/40 or better? 

100% in last year (2007-08)

What percentage achieved 20/20 or better? 

That depends on their initial Rx; this is kind of a meaningless question/statistic unless you consider initial Rx (for example, I operate routinely on patients worse than -10.00 because I am the only MD in NYC performing only non-cutting procedures, but the odds of 20/20 on such patients are not that high)

Will you provide me the names and contact information of at least ten previous patients who have had the exact same surgery with similar refractive error? 

Yes, but only if you come in

  Have you ever had malpractice insurance coverage denied?

No, as I don’t have any claims (perfect record)!

  Are you currently involved in any lawsuits or legal battles where you were accused of malpractice?  If yes, how many are you currently involved in and how many in the past 5 years.  Would you be willing to provide case numbers that I could research with the state?

None yet. One woman contacted me through her lawyer for records a year ago, but we never heard from her again, so I think she may have dropped this matter, as she had a recognized complication (scarring) which was her own fault (for not taking the correct steroid drops we prescribed for her)

Have you had your license to perform refractive surgery revoked, suspended or restricted?

No

Have you been convicted of a felony?

No

Can I do one eye at a time?

Of course, as this is inherently a bit safer, and what I did myself (although 99% of our patients elect 2 eyes at a time)

Is your laser and laser procedure FDA approved?

Of course; there was only 1 MD in the US using his own “homemade” laser (Dr. Kremer in King of Prussia, PA), but this was because he was an early investigator, and comfortable “building” his own “box”.

What percentage of your LASEK surgeries become PRK surgeries because the epithelium cannot be peeled back?

0%; we do this routinely as we performed a study on 100 eyes (50 patients) showing they actually heal quicker this way; many other MDs have replicated this work, so now most of the top Advanced Surface Ablation surgeons are discarding the epithilium (this does NOT make it a PRK, but I will have to discuss this with you in person).

How much will this surgery cost me per eye?

 A lot, as we are the top non-cutting center in NYC.

 Actually, we accept the same $/day you are now spending/wasting on glasses/contacts/solutions! J

  Do you accept VSP vision coverage?

 I’m not sure you have to ask my patient coordinator, Swan, when you come in.

Please bear in mind that you cannot “qualify” a center or MD via email, it takes a personal visit, so see you soon!

 Emil William Chynn, MD FACS MBA

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 2nd, 2008 at 6:53 am and is filed under About Our Staff, About Dr. Chynn. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.