It's hard to believe that laser eye surgery has only been around for about 23 years, with the most popular form, LASIK (Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis), only now coming up to its 20th anniversary.

If you wear glasses or contact lenses, you've probably considered laser eye surgery at one stage or another -- it tends to be that type of procedure that people think about over a long period, weighing up the pros and cons and the financial outlay.

Many thousands of Irish people have already undergone the procedure, but what exactly is holding others back and how has technology changed since the early days?

Tony Veverka is CEO of Ultralase, which is one of the largest laser eye surgery companies in Ireland and the UK. He says that the introduction of LASIK in the early 1990s revolutionised the laser eye surgery market.

"The surgery before then, PRK (Photorefractive Keratectomy), served a fairly limited range of prescriptions, was relatively painful and had a longer healing process," he explains. "LASIK made it much less painful and the recovery time was much quicker."

Tony relates to the experiences of people undergoing laser eye surgery, as he himself had the procedure 10 years ago.

"I looked into getting laser eye surgery about 15 years ago but my prescription at that stage was too bad to have it done. As technology advanced, I came into the fold and was able to have LASIK. I'll never forget the morning after I had the surgery and woke up in my hotel room. I could see everything clearly for the first time in years."

Laser eye surgery involves changing the shape of the cornea (the clear covering at the front of the eye) to improve the sharpness of a person's vision. It's generally suitable for people with short-sightedness, long-sightedness and astigmatism (caused by an irregular curvature of the cornea).

There are two main types of laser eye surgery -- LASEK (Laser-Assisted Sub-Epithelial Keratomileusis) and LASIK (Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis). LASIK is a more popular procedure and has less downtime for patients afterwards.

It involves lifting a thin layer of the cornea to create a flap (either a small blade or a laser is used to create this flap). Then a pre-programmed laser reshapes the underlying surface and the flap is repositioned.

LASEK is usually recommended for patients with thin corneas or for people who play contact sports. Instead of a flap being made with a blade, the top layer of the cornea is treated with some alcohol so that it detaches from the underlying tissue and can be rolled back. The same laser technique as LASIK is used and the top layer is repositioned.

One of the main technological developments in LASIK has been the introduction of a laser, instead of a blade, to create the flap in the cornea.

"This means the application of treatment is more predictable and accurate," says Tony Veverka. "The other major development has been Wavefront technology. This smoothes out aberrations, lumps and bumps on the eye surface. This gives the patient a sharper vision, particularly in dim light and during night-time driving."

Ursula Sweeney, who had LASIK eye surgery earlier this year, says that some of the technological advances persuaded her to have the operation.

"I had looked into laser eye surgery when I was in my 20s, but the things I had read made me wary about it," says the 32-year-old from Blanchardstown, Dublin.

"Some of the articles were talking about blurring or damage to night vision. But once I found out about some of the new technologies, I felt that those problems were being addressed."

Ursula got her first pair of glasses when she was 15 and her prescription kept deteriorating over the years, to the point where she was a minus six prior to getting laser treatment.

"It was only when I got older that having to wear glasses started to really annoy me," she says. "I was allergic to a lot of the metals used in them. I suppose as you get older, you get vainer and just want to have the freedom of not having to wear glasses all the time."

Ursula says she was still a bit nervous, but decided to visit about five different laser eye surgery clinics.

"I wanted to see what they were like, how they all work and what they charge. Some of them were better at explaining it than others, and with some of them you would feel more comfortable than with others.

"The pricing can be a bit confusing. When I went to some clinics, they gave me a choice of what kind of surgery I wanted to have, as in whether I wanted to have Wavefront technology or not. I really felt that it's surgery and if you broke your leg or whatever, nobody would give you a different price for how they do the surgery."

Ursula opted to have LASIK at the Wellington Eye Clinic in March of this year.

"It was quite early in the morning -- I was sat down in the waiting room and the nurse went through everything with me. Then when they're ready for you, you go in and lie on the table. They very calmly tell you what's going to happen and they tell you before doing anything.

"I felt that was really important as it means you don't get too nervous about what's happening. Being given some Valium helps to settle you, too.

"The hardest bit is when they put a bit of pressure on your eye and it goes black for a few seconds. But they count you back so you know it will soon pass. I was really surprised by the fact that I could see better straight away -- my eyes started to sting a bit but I was driven home by my friend and slept for the rest of the day."

Since the operation, Ursula has had her vision checked and there haven't been any problems. She says it's important to do your homework before getting laser eye surgery.

"You have to make the best decision for your eyes and there's a lot to read and research. I think there are some legitimate concerns but there are also a lot of scare stories on the internet. I think the only way to get the real answers is to directly talk to a surgeon at an eye clinic about any worries that you have."

Perhaps one of the reassuring things about laser eye surgery is that so many people have successfully had it over the past 20-odd years.

Mary Power, who is in her 40s and is from Wexford, had LASIK nearly 10 years ago and says, "I've never looked back, if you'll pardon the pun!"

She also disliked having to wear glasses or contact lenses and felt that her eyesight was deteriorating over the years.

"As with any kind of surgery, I was a bit nervous but I'm a very optimistic person and I think if you listen to all the stories, you're not going to get anything done. Ten years later, my vision is 20/20. I was out with friends recently who are all in their late 30s. I was the only one at the table who didn't have to put on reading glasses to look at the menu."

Many sportspeople are interested in laser eye surgery to help them with their game and among those who've had it done inculde Brian O'Driscoll and Tiger Woods.

Paul Shefflin plays hurling for his club team, Ballyhale Shamrocks, in Kilkenny. He decided to get LASIK last month and had surgery at Ultralase in Waterford.

"I was short-sighted ever since I started work so I've needed glasses the last seven years," says Paul who is 29 and works as an accountant.

"I was never really comfortable wearing glasses and I wouldn't wear my contact lenses when I was going out which meant I'd walk past people and not recognise them.

"I wore contact lenses for playing hurling but it wasn't easy -- a lens could get dislodged during a game and then I'd have to try to put in a spare disposable one."

Like a lot of other people, Paul became interested in getting laser eye surgery through hearing about experiences of friends.

"There are always potential dangers, but I thought about the number of people who've got it done and the small number of complications. I felt there was no point getting too upset about it as it's been successfully used by so many thousands of people."

Paul says the operation itself wasn't too difficult.

"I did have a bit of discomfort afterwards and the next morning my eye was a bit bloodshot and had a gritty feeling in it. But that didn't last long and I did notice an improvement in my vision. It's great being back playing hurling now and not needing contact lenses."

There are still many people out there who have thought about laser eye surgery but haven't taken the plunge yet.

That's why Tony says there is still growth potential in Ireland and the UK for the procedure.

"From 1996 to early 2003, there was lots of growth in LASIK," he says.

"There was a bit of a lull from 2003 to 2005 and there was more market growth from 2005 to 2008. Now the industry has been affected and that's because people's discretionary spending has been affected by the economy.

"The price of laser eye surgery was initially quite high because buying the lasers was a huge investment for clinics. The price came down and went up again, partly due to the new technologies, but like for like, the cost now is a lot less than when it was first introduced.

"Generally pricing does come way down the list in the considerations that people have about the procedure.

"They are more concerned about the safety aspects and what's involved in the procedure.

"Some people are naturally squeamish about their eyes. But there is no other elective procedure as successful as laser eye surgery -- there's no similar way of changing your life for the better in a matter of minutes."

- Lisa Jewell