Eye laser surgery safe, say doctors

BEIJING - Eye doctors in the capital are expressing confidence in laser eye surgery, or LASIK, despite the safety concerns that a Taiwan specialist raised this week.

Ray Tsai, an ophthalmologist and LASIK pioneer, told Taiwan media on Tuesday that he plans to cease performing the surgeries after learning that some patients who had undergone it had experienced sudden losses of vision and had developed other complications.

Industry analysts estimate that 1.5 million LASIK eye operations are performed on the mainland a year, each costing at least 6,000 yuan ($953).