Family of Penn Hills officer Ryan Kingerski: LASIK surgery led to unbearable pain and tragic suicide

By Marcie Cipriani

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    PITTSBURGH (WTAE) — Ryan Kingerski was a police officer, a twin brother, a man who was adored by his parents and someone who they said was always smiling, before he underwent LASIK eye surgery.

Kingerski was only 26 years old.

“It just … it ruined his life. Ruined it. Completely ruined his life in 12 seconds,” said Tim Kingerski, Ryan’s father.

Tim and Stefanie Kingerski said since their son’s surgery in August, he had been living with excruciating headaches, double vision, dark spots floating in his eyesight and extreme sensitivity.

The Kingerskis immediately began taking Ryan from one specialist to another, looking for relief.

“It was one disappointment after another,” said Tim Kingerski.

Ryan, a Penn Hills police officer, couldn’t work. His vision and pain were now keeping him from a career he loved, and following in his father’s footsteps, as his brother Jacob had too.

In January, with still no relief, Ryan Kingerski took his own life.

“My heart just breaks,” said Stefanie Kingerski.

For Stefanie and Tim, losing Ryan has filled them with indescribable pain.

“Nothing feels right, nothing. Can’t sleep. Don’t eat. Just think about what could have been,” the couple explains.

In their pain, the Kingerski’s are on a mission to share Ryan’s story and to help others.

“He didn’t want anyone else to ever feel the same way, and he wanted people to know the facts,” said Stefanie Kingerski.

The Kingerski’s are now Ryan’s voice. They want anyone considering LASIK to know that complications are possible, and that Ryan was not alone.

Detroit TV meteorologist Jessica Starr took her life years earlier, after posting online about her complications and struggles after refractive eye surgery.

Texas college student Max Cronin took his life not long after undergoing laser eye surgery, too. Cronin’s mother, Nancy Burleson, reported that complications from the surgery prevented him from continuing with school and kept Cronin from working, before he too took his life. Cronin’s family said that in his suicide letter, he blamed laser eye surgery.

“They make a slice, and they mess everything up,” said Morris Waxler.

Waxler is the former head of the Food and Drug Administration branch responsible for reviewing data and approving LASIK decades ago. Waxler said when he signed off, it was an agreement for 100 clinical trials. He said he left the FDA not long after and in recent years, he petitioned the FDA to voluntarily recall its approval. That was denied, but Waxler said the complications, as the Kingerski’s know, are real.

“They cut nerves, then, in addition, they take out a divot, which removes all the support structure or muscle out of the support section and all of it,” said Waxler. ” Sometimes it grows back, sometimes it doesn’t grow back, sometimes it grows back poorly. (For) some people, it’s a bigger problem than others.”

Despite Waxler’s warnings, millions of Americans choose LASIK eye surgery.

According to the American Refractive Surgery Council, Lasik has a 96% patient satisfaction rate. They report, “It is estimated that far less than 1% of patients suffer sight-threatening complications from LASIK.”

But Stefanie and Tim Kingerski said their son Ryan was one of them, and they say he was never warned he could be.

“Ryan would be here. If all he did was tell the truth,”said Tim Kingerski

The Kingerski’s have made it their mission to fight for those like Ryan, who were not warned.

“It doesn’t feel enough. We just want to see our boy,” said Stefanie.

“Everybody’s going to judge him, you know, for what happened. But it wasn’t him. That wasn’t him,” said Tim.

Tim and Stefanie Kingerski said Ryan should be remembered for who he was before the life-changing surgery — a happy, loving public servant whose life was filled with joy.

In his name, they are encouraging anyone who has had complications after LASIK to fill out a MedWatch form. The information goes straight to the FDA. You can do so by clicking here.

The Kingerski’s are also encouraging anyone who is suffering to join support groups and, if they are feeling hopeless, to reach out for crisis and suicide prevention.

Does the FDA consider LASIK eye surgery safe? What are the patients’ satisfaction / nonsatisfaction statistics?

FDA: The FDA considers LASIK lasers to be safe and effective when used as intended in accordance with the approved indications for use. In our own continued assessment of the literature and medical device reports, the FDA has not found any new safety concerns associated with LASIK devices to lead it to believe that there is no longer a reasonable assurance that these devices are safe and effective.

The FDA continues to monitor adverse events associated with LASIK to better understand the safety and effectiveness associated with this procedure. The FDA evaluates patient satisfaction as part of our premarket review of these devices through use of validated patient reported outcome measures that are deemed fit-for-purpose. This information can be found in the labeling and Summary of Safety and Effective Data (SSED) documents for devices approved under panel-track supplements and original PMAs. You may search for LASIK lasers in the FDA’s Premarket Approval (PMA) database using the product code LZS.

Are screenings required prior to surgery? Are patients required to be counseled/warned about the risks?

FDA: Patients considering the LASIK procedure should thoroughly discuss the benefits and risks of the procedure with a health care professional.

LASIK is not for everyone. Before making a decision whether to undergo LASIK surgery, an elective procedure, patients should be adequately counseled about the possibility of developing new eye symptoms, or worsening any existing eye conditions, after surgery. It is important that patients read the patient handbook provided to LASIK doctors by the manufacturer of the LASIK laser they use for their LASIK surgical procedures. Moreover, it’s important that LASIK doctors evaluate their patients thoroughly to determine if they are good candidates for the procedure. We encourage everyone considering LASIK to review information on FDA’s website about who is not a good candidate for LASIK prior to making a decision.

The FDA is aware that patients may not be receiving information in a format that allows them to make a well-informed decision about LASIK. As such, the FDA is working to update and finalize its draft guidance to help ensure patients are informed of the significant risks associated with LASIK prior to choosing this type of surgery and are informed about the latest information on these devices. FDA guidance documents, including this guidance, should be viewed only as recommendations, unless specific regulatory or statutory requirements are cited.

What are the approved treatments for patients suffering complications?

FDA: We recommend you reach out to health care provider with this question.

Where can patients report their concerns/complications?

FDA: The FDA takes adverse events concerning LASIK seriously. Patients who have undergone LASIK eye surgery and have experienced complications following their procedure can report these problems to FDA’s MedWatch reporting system. When reporting an issue, patients should include the name of the device (i.e. specific name of the laser and the device manufacturer, if known).

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