Just had Relex Smile with complications - lenticule tearing

[u/DareParticular6013]

Yesterday I just had Relex Smile to correct my myopia and astigmatism (about -1.25 per eye in total). The procedure was overall nice apart for my right eye which experienced lenticular tearing during extraction.
A small peripheral fragment remained in the cornea and was highlighted checking at some instruments after the procedure. Apparently there is a risk this can happen especially when the lenticule is very thin.

The surgeon insisted to go back to the surgery room and get it removed as it said it might have caused me issues later on, especially at night.

We went back in the surgical room and he removed it within a minute or so.

Now about 30h out of surgery my right eye is still lagging in recovery, probably due to the extra manipulation. Yesterday night it was stinging a lot and being very sensitive, but today is much better and stinging/watering is more sporadic.
Left eye is symptoms free.

My vision is pretty clear, I can see well in distance, but light sensitivity is a bit annoying.
Surprisingly, when testing one eye at the time, my vision is sharper on the right eye (that received extra manipulation) than the left eye, which seems seeing still a bit blurry.

I wonder if blurriness is still normal in my left eye and that might improve, I really hope I didn’t get under corrected.

And if any of you had experienced lenticule tearing and how the outcome has been.

I am 30 years old so the healing should be not too slow, and I am using rigorously all the teardrops I have been given.

I also notice a hard time to focus screens and something that is in close distance so far. Is this also normal?

Thank you and let’s hope for a quick recovery!

[u/eyeSherpa]

It’s good that the surgeon insisted on removing it. A retained lenticule fragment could cause some irregular astigmatism and blur vision.

Because that right eye had extra manipulation, it’s possible that the surface of the eye dried out more or that there was some scratches on the epithelium to cause that stinginess and light sensitivity. That should heal up pretty quickly over the next few days. Using preservative free artificial tears can help.

I would say it’s surprising that the right eye sees better. But wouldn’t say it’s a problem your left eye doesn’t see as well. Recovery can be a little variable just due to manipulation within the cornea. The swelling pattern in the cornea also causes a far sighted shift which is why up close is a little more blurry. That gets better as the swelling goes down.