Q: My left eye corrects pretty well with glasses. My right is pretty well a lazy eye, but I try to use both when my glasses are off. (i'm far sighted about +5.75 in left, 'good' eye). But one of the problems with my right eye I don't understand is that even if I can read the letters or words, sometimes it's hard to follow the sentence, like it's hard to see all the letters or words one after the other or it gets a bit mixed up. Part of it seems to be when I cover my left eye, the image of my left, seeing the inside of my eyelid is still so strong in my mind, it outweighs the image of what I'm reading with my right. Why is this and can it be fixed with LASIK? A: With lazy eye, also known as amblyopia, the patient will often have trouble putting multiple letters together, just as you describe. Lasik will not correct this. Andrew Caster, MD www.CasterVision.com

Q: I have herpes in my eyes. Is it possible to get the surgery if I don't get breakouts often? A: Lasik or PRK may exacerbate herpes outbreaks. So you should not have the surgery unless the outbreaks have been rare and have not occurred for some time. Andrew Caster, MD www.CasterVision.com

Q: With PRK surgery the eye is reshaped to see correctly at 20/20. Does this mean the eye is as it was when I saw 20/20 normally before I needed glasses? Does it shape it to be the correct shape. The same way it was before I ever needed glasses? Thank you. A:  After PRK or Lasik, the cornea is reshaped to match the rest of the eye, in order to obtain the best vision possible. Because your eye has changed in many subtle ways since you saw 20/20 as a child, the corneal shape will not be identical. Andrew Caster, MD www.CasterVision.com

Q:  How do we know if we have a good doctor? My husband is going to see Dr. Flowers and we don't know how to check that he is a good doctor. Thanks, Leslie A: It is difficult to determine who is a great doctor and who is not. I would recommend looking at their background and credentials, and doing as much research on the internet as you feel appropriate. What kind of honors have they received? Do they have a lot of lawsuits or other problems that you can discover on the internet? Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com

Q: Can a person with lazy eye get lasik and if so, will it actually work? A: A person with lazy eye can get Lasik, if the eye isn't too lazy. This will not cure the "laziness", so the vision will not be corrected to 20/20. It will be corrected as well as the eye can be corrected with glasses or contacts. Andrew Caster, MD www.CasterVision.com

Q: I am interested in custom lasik surgery and it appears I am a good candidate. My only concern is whether I should get IntraLasik surgery or Lasik with the microkeratome. Which would you recommend, keeping in mind that I would be more than willing to spend extra to get the IntraLasik. A: I use both, but personally prefer the microkeratome for most cases. Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com

Q: I am a 50 year old woman in good general health. My left eye uncorrected is 20/100 with astigmatism and it is also amblyopic. I was wearing glasses at a young age, I believe before school age. My corrected vision in that eye is 20/30 and my right eye is 20/20. I am considering lasik for the left eye and am concerned whether this is a good move on my part or not. I would like to know the best case scenario and the worst case scenario of having this procedure done. Thank you for your time and response. A: With vision correctable to 20/30 in your amblyopic eye, most doctors would feel comfortable recommending lasik to you. Although lasik is extremely safe in terms of major vision-treatening complications, it is best to evaluate what a person's life would be like if they had a horrible complication in their good eye. For this reason, I will not perform lasik on a person with only one functioning eye. With vision correctable to 20/30, life would still be tolerable if, theoretically, that were to be your only eye. Severely compromised vision is exceedingly rare after lasik, but this is the thought process that I bring to this issue. Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com

Q: I've been hearing about ACC. Can you explain what this is and if it's better than the other forms of LASIK? I got a little freaked out about the flap at my LASIK consultation. About how much should LASIK cost? I saw 2 doctors and the quotes were $2,500 and $5,995. I'm not sure if one is too low or if the other is too high. A: ACC is not Lasik; it is the same as PRK, which is Lasik without a flap. Although both Lasik and PRK use the same laser and achieve the same long term results, the negative aspect to PRK (ACC) is that there is a much slower healing pattern. If you are uncomfortable with the concept of making a flap, then you should have PRK, which will achieve the same results. You will, however, have blurry vision for one or more weeks, and will also have a greater degree of post-op discomfort. Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com

Q: I have a lump in the corner of my eye which is colored white at the tip. I had them in both eyes but the one in the left eye has disappeared. Can you tell me what could be causing this and how I would go about ridding myself of it. I am 43 years of age. Thank You. A: You will have to see an eye doctor to determine what it is. Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com

Q: Can mental and emotional stress, anxiety and too much crying cause complications after the lasik. complications like blurry vision and nearsightedness after the surgery. A: Mental stress can affect the body in a myriad of ways, and can affect the healing pattern. Andrew Caster, MD www.castervision.com