1. What made you decide to pursue the field of ophthalmology as a career?
I would say that it was my destiny. My name is Lucio, and luce means light. Nobody pushed me to enter the ophthalmology field, I decided to do that myself. I went to see and observe many doctors and many hospitals before deciding on my career path. When I practiced in the ophthalmologic department, I started to see some patients and found that the eye — this little part of the human body — was very interesting to me.

2. What was some of the first work you did in the field of ophthalmology?
The first study that I did was with a machine that was a prototype of the laser photocoagulator (the laser was not in existence at this time). This machine performed a similar procedure to what the laser does now — it was, however, much bigger and rough. It was a machine that pumped light and produced some scarring on the retina. We started to treat the retina with this very big instrument. It was back then that I truly became interested in the field of ophthalmology. Once again, light was introducing me to ophthalmology!

3. Sometimes you are referred to as the father of modern LASIK. Where do you think the future of keratorefractive surgery is headed?
There will be a lot of differences/improvements for the cornea. Excimer lasers and other similar lasers (eg, FS laser; Intralase Corp, Irvine, Calif) will affect the results of keratorefractive surgery, and the results of intraocular surgery will be much better because these lasers offer a much wider range of application. Currently, patients are achieving better night vision. With these new lasers (eg, Intralase), you can enhance the surgical outcomes of the excimer laser in patients with myopia or other intraocular defects. In the instance of a patient with presbyopia, the excimer laser can now induce multifocality.

4. What is the biggest obstacle facing refractive surgery and refractive surgeons today?
In the past, we made similar mistakes around the world. We excited our patients about the possibility of extremely good results, and we treated too many patients (some nonexcellent indications); I would say we treated all (or at least the overall majority) of the patients who entered our respective practices. Not all of the patients we treated were really good candidates for surgery, and not all of them received the treatment with the best machines and technology available. Unfortunately, because we had some bad worldwide results, we received bad publicity in the media.
Therefore, patients may now be skeptical about refractive surgery. I know for sure that when I have the right patient, I can give them excellent results. Patients do not always trust the surgery or the surgeon any more, because we promised too much in the past.

5. What advice do you have for new surgeons, with regard to managing their patients' expectations and outcomes?
I would tell them to do less business and to take care of the patients they currently have. Unfortunately for many refractive surgeons, when they see a patient, they see dollars in their eyes and not a professional opportunity to improve quality of vision and life for their patient. It is not the same way for a cataract surgeon or a retina specialist, but it is a typical approach of a refractive surgeon. They should focus more on their patients and less on their incomes.