Award-winning actress says goodbye to nearsightedness with LASIK

Tiffany Smith may be an award-winning thespian, but she’s not acting when she raves about her perfect vision after LASIK eye surgery with Dr. Kerry Assil.

Hollywood-based Tiffany, 38, a multi-faceted actress, host, and web personality, believes the Assil Gaur Eye Institute in Beverly Hills has given her a brighter future for her eye health.

“I have fewer things to think about when I wake up in the morning,” says Smith, whose roles include hit TV shows like Supernatural, Jane the Virgin, and Behind Enemy Lines. “I now have superhero eyes. It’s incredibly nice to get out of bed and be able to see things.”

LASIK can fix nearsightedness

Since Tiffany was a youngster she’d had poor distance vision, technically known as myopia, and worn eyeglasses. Nearsightedness occurs when the natural lens of the eyeball is too long or the eye’s cornea and lens are too powerful. This causes light rays to focus in front of the retina.

Laser eye surgery for nearsighted people works by flattening the central cornea, allowing light to focus correctly on the retina. LASIK (laser-assisted in situ keratomileuses) is also an effective approach to vision correction for eye conditions such as astigmatism and farsightedness (hyperopia).

LASIK cannot prevent presbyopia, the loss of near vision from a lack of flexibility and elasticity of the lens of the eye, which is part of the natural aging process.

Contacts be gone with LASIK

When Tiffany reached adulthood, she augmented her glasses with contacts for better vision. “They both worked well but they were tedious,” says Tiffany, who spends her free time learning stunt work, motorcycle riding, and SCUBA diving. “Wearing contact lenses when SCUBA diving was nerve-wracking.”

Eventually, Tiffany was fed up with having blurry vision without help from glasses and contacts.

“I knew about LASIK. I’d been exploring treatment options for two years,” says Tiffany, who has hosted E! News and E! Live 360 at the Oscars. “My contacts worked well enough but when a close friend said she was having LASIK at AGEI, I said let’s look into it more.”

That’s when her journey slipped into high gear. To her amazement, she was given an appointment with Dr. Assil immediately. After an examination and consultation about what would be involved with the surgery, she was ready to roll.

“It all happened in two weeks,” she marvels. “I ended up having LASIK before my friend who recommended it to me.”

One of the things she learned at AGEI is they practice pioneering advances in ophthalmology like their state-of-the-art EagleVision® LASIK surgery to correct the refractive error. EagleVision enables Dr. Assil to safely correct nearsightedness, while also improving night and reading vision.

Tiffany was impressed that people like Brad Pitt, Marlee Matlin, Michelle Williams, Courtney Cox, and even LeBron James trusted Dr. Assil with their eyes. She was up for the procedure.

Time for the LASIK procedure 

Tiffany says she was a little nervous the day of the surgery but was more excited than anything.

The outpatient refractive surgery uses gentle laser energy to reshape the corneal tissue so it can focus more precisely on light.

After being given mild sedation, Dr. Assil numbed Tiffany’s eyes with drops. He then used an eyelid blink protector to help the eyes remain open and steady.

The doctor then used an excimer laser to make a paper-thin flap in the cornea. That flap was then folded back to give the laser access to the cornea.

Tiffany stared at a light while Dr. Assil reshaped her cornea using a laser with customized algorithms developed by Dr. Assil himself. The algorithms were pre-programmed with the exact measurements of Tiffany’s eyes.

After reshaping the cornea, (about 30 seconds per eye) the ophthalmologist folded the flap back down where it sealed into position.

“The surgery was great and super-fast,” says Tiffany. “I only had time to listen to two and a half Harry Styles songs.”

The LASIK recovery time

Except for her eyes watering a bit, Tiffany walked out of the surgery suite with no side effects. “It felt like when you cut up onions. That was pretty much the only thing.”

She was also given eye drops to soothe her dry eyes during the healing process.

When she arises each day, it’s like a small miracle. “I have to keep reminding myself that I didn’t fall asleep with my contacts in,” she says. “That’s how well I see now.”

Tiffany is already back in her acting career without vision problems. “They can move the prompter a lot farther away from me now and I can still easily see the script,” says Tiffany. Her vision is now 20/15 in one eye and 20/20 in the other. “I’m excited that I can now donate my glasses collection to those in need.”

The importance of choosing Assil Gaur Eye Institute 

At AGEI, you will experience state-of-the-art ophthalmology that brings revolutionary technologies together with experienced, board-certified vision care professionals. Our goal is to help you achieve your best possible vision with our eye care. Contact us for a consultation.

Please call 866-945-2745 or visit us here to make an appointment online with our eye doctors. If you are experiencing any concerning symptoms or require immediate eye care, contact us immediately to determine the best time to schedule an exam.

Assil Gaur Eye Institute takes our patients’ safety seriously. Our facility’s Covid-19 patient safety procedures exceed all the CDC’s coronavirus pandemic recommendations. Masks are always required in our institutes.

We are conveniently located for patients throughout Southern California and the Los Angeles area at locations in or near Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, West Los Angeles, West Hollywood, Culver City, Hollywood, Venice, Marina del Rey, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, and Downtown Los Angeles.