|
Some three million people in US have had refractive surgery. Another 35 million wear contact lenses, while 140 million wear glasses. These statistics alone are enough to encourage, Gilbert Kliman MD to be optimistic about the prospects for refractive surgery in the near future. "We’re in a huge market that is still minimally penetrated. Only a small number of patients have been treated, and a lot more out there will be. There are many innovative technologies coming into play now that will broaden the spectrum of patients that can be treated, giving them better visual outcomes." Dr Kliman enumerated several major factors that would affect refractive surgery volume. First, technologic innovations are giving better visual outcomes. A majority of patients now achieve 20/20, and incremental improvements provided by new technologies such as wavefront sensing and femtosecond lasers may make this procedure even better. "We now have more surgical options than ever before. Perhaps the main challenge is choosing between these to determine which will produce best results for our patients." In this regard, Dr Kliman advised surgeons to focus on building their practices by talking to patients and recommending specific procedures. He recommended focusing on the patient’s experience, doing whatever can be done to improve outcomes. "There have been some unsuccessful experiments with direct to consumer advertising or using optometrist networks to drive volume. These really have not worked. We need to talk about the value to the patient, not just the price. Cutting prices has not grown the market and may have even decreased the dollar size of the market. Price cutting is a self inflicted would by ophthalmologists that is completely preventable." He cited consumer perception as another very important aspect of the current situation. While market surveys suggest that LASIK is generally perceived well, it is clear that the public is concerned about the potential complications of refractive surgery. The remedy for this is for surgeons to continue to work to reduce complication and reoperation rates. The factor influencing the refractive market that is most discussed is also the one over which surgeons have the least influence- the economy. LASIK volume decreased in tandem with the general economy. At the same time surgeons are facing increasing costs as new technologies become available. Current market conditions notwithstanding, Dr Kliman predicted a recovery in the refractive market in the next couple of years. "Perhaps the time to start investing for that recovery is right now. When the excimer laser was introduced in 1995 the procedure cost was $250 per eye and many questioned whether there was even a market for laser vision correction. The people who invested in 1995 and 1996 went on to become the high volume surgeons during the boom." Gilbert Kliman MD |
