[WaltPurvis]

I had LASIK almost 20 years ago, from one of the leading practitioners in the then-fairly-young field, and I scrupulously followed the post-op regimen, yet I still experience noticeable halos and starbursts with lights at night, and my eyes are considerably more sensitive to the sun (I basically can't tolerate being outside in the daytime for any length of time without sunglasses, whereas I never even owned a pair of sunglasses before the surgery).

These are fairly minor issues for me, and I've never regretted getting LASIK, but a reputable surgeon doesn't guarantee lack of side effects.

[pnutjam]

I've never had Lasik, I'm severely nearsighted, but I've become much more sensitive to light as I've aged.

[tsmarsh]

I'm barely nearsighted, really just use glasses so that I can read presentations in meetings... and yeah, my eyes have become significantly more sensitive to both light and change rapid changes in light.

[sageabilly]

"a reputable surgeon doesn't guarantee lack of side effects."

Absolutely! Side effects are possible for anyone getting the surgery, and like I said in my parent comment (or hoped to say), everyone should weigh the potential pros and cons to decide if the rewards outweigh the risks. For me, I already had terrible night vision (due to my astigmatism) and sensitivity to light, so after reading about potential side effects I determined to go forward with the surgery.

Also, I believe that advances in the LASIK procedure over the years have mitigated a lot of the side effect risks (though not reduced completely), so people getting the surgery today will have less side effects then you did getting the surgery 20 years ago.