PATIENT EXPECTATIONS AND RECOLLECTION OF INFORMATION ABOUT PHOTOREFRACTIVE KERATECTOMY

Purpose: To assess the expectations of surgical result and recollectio n of a standardized information briefing by patients having photorefra ctive keratectomy (PRK). Setting: Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Lubeck, Germany. Methods: Thirty-two patients were aske d to complete a multiple-choice questionnaire immediately after standa rdized information briefings and I month after PRK to establish their comprehension of the information briefing, what they remembered of it, and what they expected from the refractive procedure. Results: Althou gh the estimated intelligence quotient of the patients was above avera ge (115 +/- 7.23) and almost all rated the information briefings as be ing comprehensible, only simple, basic facts about PRK were remembered immediately after the briefing as well as 1 month postoperatively. Of 12 possible undesired consequences, 6.4 were remembered before surger y and 3.9 after surgery. The latter were mainly side effects the patie nts experienced themselves. Conclusion: As most patients rejected the possibility of serious complications, for medicolegal reasons, careful , accurate documentation of the contents of and patients' satisfaction with the information briefing is necessary.