Thomas Eye Group Technical excellence is our doctors’ watchword, and we would be proud to show you their outstanding records. However, each of our LASIK surgeons would much prefer to talk with you about your vision expectations.
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Comprehensive and Refractive Surgeon
Jeffrey A. Carlisle, M.D. is a board-certified ophthalmologist specializing in comprehensive ophthalmologic eye care since 1988. He sees patients at our Atlanta and Lilburn offices. Among Dr. Carlisle's main areas of interest are LASIK and refractive surgery. He has been performing refractive surgery since 1993 and began performing LASIK in 1999.
Dr. Carlisle earned bachelor's degrees in music and chemistry from Emory University and received his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. While at MCG, he also undertook a summer externship in neuro-ophthalmology. He then completed an internship with additional training in internal medicine at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. While in Memphis, he also worked as a research fellow in ophthalmology. He then went on to a research fellowship in ophthalmology in Columbia, South Carolina. Dr. Carlisle subsequently completed his ophthalmology training in Columbia, South Carolina, at one of the nation's few four-year residency training programs in comprehensive ophthalmology. During his final year there, he served as Chief Resident. He also serves as President of the Board of Directors of the Thomas Eye Group.
Dr. Carlisle is currently a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Medical Association, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Georgia Society of Ophthalmology, and the Medical Association of Georgia.
Comprehensive and Refractive Surgeon
Augustus T. Stephens, M.D. is a Board-Certified ophthalmic surgeon who has been in private practice for more than 15 years. Originally from Aiken, S.C., he attended Morehouse College in Atlanta. Dr. Stephens received his medical degree from Morehouse School of Medicine and completed clinical training in ophthalmology at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and the University of California-Davis. After completing his residency in 1995, Dr. Stephens served as an instructor and assistant residency director at Howard. Dr. Stephens began in private practice at a large multi-specialty clinic in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and subsequently worked with Tulsa Eye Group in Tulsa, Okla. He founded Stephens Eye Associates in Atlanta in 2001. In addition to his work with ocular diseases, he has extensive experience with small-incision, suture-free cataract surgery, glaucoma surgery, and refractive laser procedures.
In his leisure time, Dr. Stephens enjoys golf, tennis, deep-sea and fly fishing, as well as outdoor adventure travel including kayaking, hiking, and camping.
Cornea, Comprehensive and Refractive Surgeon
David J. Sackel, M.D. is a fellowship-trained ophthalmologist specializing in cornea and external disease (including corneal transplants and management of corneal ulcers), as well as cataract and refractive surgery. He received his undergraduate degree from Duke University where he graduated magna cum laude and attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. While in medical school, David earned his MBA at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Following his internship in internal medicine at Pennsylvania Hospital, Dr. Sackel completed his ophthalmology residency at New York University (NYU) and his cornea and refractive surgery fellowship training at Emory University.
Dr. Sackel is an active member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) and the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS). David is originally from Orlando, Florida. He enjoys spending time with his wife and son, watching movies, and playing tennis in his free time.
Schedule Your FREE LASIK Consultation
Bladeless LASIK at Thomas Eye Group has the ability to restore vision to 20/20 or even better for people suffering from nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. This procedure provides a significant improvement in lifestyle and freedom from the hassles and irritations of lenses. Specific results depend upon your eyesight - each result is unique to the patient.
Bladeless LASIK takes only minutes per eye. Inserting or removing contact lenses or just rubbing eyes that are tired from wearing glasses can produce more discomfort than a LASIK procedure. You can expect to start seeing better right away. However, your eyes will need to rest while the healing process takes over. After the procedure, you’ll be asked to go home and relax or take a nap. After a good night’s sleep, you can expect to wake to your first morning without lenses. One of our patients’ most frequent comments after LASIK surgery is that they can see the alarm clock for the first time without the need for glasses. The freedom to swim, hike, travel, and work without the inconveniences of glasses or contacts - this is just the start of life after Bladeless LASIK.
Thomas Eye Group is proud to be part of the RSC Verified program. The seal reflects our commitment to providing you with the information you need to make the right decisions for your vision correction. The RSC Verified seal also represents a promise and a standard for information that is unbiased and based on the latest science. Information you read with RSC Verified seal has been developed under the guidance of the Refractive Surgery Council and meets the highest standard for quality and accuracy. Information with the RSC Verified seal will ensure you have the information you need to make an informed decision about your vision correction options.
Your eyes are as unique as your fingerprints and the most precise LASIK vision correction technology addresses these highly individual characteristics. This advanced technology creates a detailed 3D map of the surface of the cornea and then translates that information into digital treatment instructions which are then sent directly to the VisX S4 excimer Laser System. At Thomas Eye Group we use the most advanced lasers available to ensure the most precise and desirable outcomes for every patient.
It means highly customized treatment of the corneal conditions that have been creating your vision problems, plus the confidence that your surgeon is using the most advanced state-of-the-art technologies to help you attain your vision goals. In the final analysis, your successful LASIK outcome depends mostly on the skill, commitment, and experience of the LASIK surgeon who performs your procedure.
Once you are satisfied that you are in the best possible hands with our LASIK surgeons at Thomas Eye Group, rest assured that we will use the most advanced technologies to correct the refractive errors that have cause your poor vision in the first place and leave you with the best vision your eyes are capable of achieving. Thomas Eye Group has offices in Atlanta, Hamilton Mill, Lilburn, Lithonia, Newnan, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Suwanee, and Woodstock.
In the earliest days of laser vision correction in Atlanta and the United States, some patients reported complications such as halos and ‘starring’ after their procedures, especially when driving at night. Factually, many people who have never had LASIK suffer from night vision problems. However, today’s advanced LASIK lasers have dealt very authoritatively with these issues, achieving a much lower likelihood of night vision issues, and with patients in some studies reporting better night vision. If you are seeking Atlanta custom LASIK or would like more information regarding our custom LASIK eye surgery procedure please call us at 855-ATL-LASIK.
Losing, misplacing, forgetting, scratching, slipping, tearing, smearing, fogging, sore eyes, red eyes, itchy eyes, glued to your eyeballs, allergies, hay fever, cabin fever (because you can’t do water sports) and pocketbook shrinkage.
After LASIK you can take all of these words, phrases and hassles out of your dictionary - and your life.
Here are the most common pros and cons when our patients compare life with contacts versus life after LASIK:
The alarm clock factor - It’s amazing how the little things can end up being so important. This is one of the most frequent delights after LASIK: “I can wake up and actually SEE the alarm clock in the morning!” How much better would that be as a way to start and continue your day?
The risks of long-term contacts use - Unfortunately, this is becoming a more frequent gripe with contacts. In the past six years, the FDA has posted an increasing number of advisories concerning risks associated with contact lenses. Some researchers have reported the risk factor with contacts as five times greater than with LASIK.* Contact lens wearers have also been warned about the risk for infection by a parasite and Acanthamoeba outbreaks among contact lens wearers. This doesn’t mean contacts are dangerous, it just means taking a balanced view of both sides - and choosing LASIK!
Freedom to play water sports - Glasses are impossible to wear in most active sports, but contacts can be hazardous or restrictive, especially with water sports. Splash, swim, frolic, canoe, dive, and ski with complete freedom - after your LASIK surgery in Atlanta.
Appearance- Contacts do help a lot with appearance - if you’re willing to put up with the inconvenience and irritation. Choosing one of Atlanta's best LASIK surgeons to perform your LASIK surgery, you can feel as good as you look - all the time.
General Safety - “Nobody move!” are usually the words we cry just before we go on a lost contact hunt. The real issue here is that for those minutes while we scramble around, we’re virtually blind. That’s not a problem while sitting in a coffee shop - but behind the wheel of the car? Oops. With LASIK, you’ll never need to bother with contacts again.
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Footloose - Maybe this only matters if you travel a lot, but LASIK means you only have to pack what you want to take along - not what you have to take - like spare lenses, cleaning solutions, irrigating solutions, sterilizing solutions, etc. You can add here the freedom to work or party until late, grab a quick snooze and be up and at ‘em without worrying about the glued-to-the-eyeball factor.
Seeing naturally - This delight sometimes takes a while to be appreciated although it’s really the major benefit of LASIK. One day you realize you don’t have any glass or plastic between you and the rest of the world and that your eyesight is functioning exactly as nature intended.
Better vision than with contacts - Many of our patients report a more improved vision than with their contacts. Here’s why: soft contact lenses, due to their design and composition, cannot provide the quality of vision achieved with Custom LASIK. Custom LASIK solves the unique corneal irregularities that affect your vision. Also, contacts cannot fully correct astigmatism.
Cost Savings - Our patients are often surprised to realize after they do the math that the cost of LASIK in Atlanta works out cheaper than contacts. In fact, one way to look at this is that if you’re wearing contacts you’re already paying for LASIK. Over the next 10 years, you’ll probably spend around $8,000 on visits to the optometrist, new prescriptions, new lenses, replacement lenses, cleaning and sterilizing preparations - and that’s a cost that keeps on keeping on. On the other hand, LASIK surgery at Thomas Eye Group is a one-time expense, and no-interest monthly payments take the sting out of the transaction. You will end up having your cake and eating it too!
Thomas Eye Group is an experienced Suwanee, Lithonia, and Atlanta area LASIK center with the latest technology and experienced surgeons
Learn more about LASIK eye surgery with the eye doctors and ophthalmologists at Thomas Eye Group. Contact us, schedule an appointment with our eye care staff, or take the LASIK self-test online today!
* Source: Mathers, W.D. Archives of Ophthalmology, October 2006; vol 124: pp 1510-1511. William Mathers, MD, professor of ophthalmology, Oregon Health & Science University Casey Eye Institute, Portland, OR. “One shouldn’t just assume that contacts are safer,” Dr. Mathers reported. “This may have been true at one time, but for the average person this is certainly not the case anymore.”*
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