If you've had or are experiencing significant medical or eye problems then LASIK isn't right for you. Conditions such as glaucoma, corneal disease, keratoconus, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, or corneal ulcers need to be discussed with your ophthalmologist.
Autoimmune disorders or diseases that make it harder for your body to heal will disqualify you from LASIK. This includes anything that could affect your ability to heal like diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and rheumatoid arthritis. Being able to heal in an efficient manner is necessary for any patient that gets LASIK.
Your Vision Is Fluctuating
Most ophthalmologists prefer that your prescription be stable for a minimum of one year before considering laser eye surgery. Prescriptions can fluctuate for a variety of reasons, including dry eye syndrome, uncontrolled diabetes, and uncontrolled high blood pressure.
Who is it suitable for? Laser eye surgery is suitable for most people over 18. Ideally your eye prescription will have stayed more or less the same for about 2 years. Lens surgery may be more suitable if you have a high spectacle prescription or later in life.
Yes, your vision can be potentially too bad for LASIK. LASIK is available to a variety of patients, but patients will generally qualify for treatment if their vision falls between -0.5 D to -8.0 D myopia. The maximum prescription for treatment for patients with moderate to severe myopia is around -8.0 D.
Blindness in one eye. Partial sightedness in one eye. Macular degeneration. Rheumatoid arthritis.
Because vision can change dramatically during the adolescent years, laser eye surgery is not recommended for anyone under the age of 18. Those who are pregnant or nursing. Hormone fluctuations during pregnancy and nursing can cause changes to a woman's vision and corrective prescription.
The qualifications of a good candidate for refractive or laser eye surgery generally include: At least 18 years of age. Stable eyeglass and contact lense prescription for at least 2 to 3 years. Stable vision over at least the past year.
No surgical procedure is 100% effective. However, LASIK has one of the highest success and satisfaction rates of any elective procedure, with 96% of LASIK patients reporting high satisfaction after treatment. Effectiveness studies show that 70% to 90% of LASIK patients achieve 20/20 vision or better after treatment.
How long does the laser eye surgery procedure take? You will be in and out of theatre in under 30 minutes, although the length of time that the laser is applied to your eye ranges from just a few seconds to two minutes, depending upon the complexity of your prescription.
There are three options to correct astigmatism – glasses, contact lenses or laser eye surgery. Prescription glasses or contact lenses can correct astigmatism (along with long-sightedness or short-sightedness, if necessary). Alternatively, laser eye surgery can correct astigmatism and give you clearer vision.
The average age for LASIK has historically been from the mid-30s up. We know that when patients return unhappy with their vision about 10 years after a LASIK procedure, the chief suspects are presbyopia and cataract. So the answer is: “It's almost always the lens, not the LASIK.”
While there is currently no age limit for older adults wanting LASIK surgery, there are some vision conditions affecting adults age 40 and above that can't be treated with this surgery. These conditions are: Presbyopia or blurry near vision typically occurring around age 40. Cataracts or glaucoma.
In general, the average age range for getting LASIK is between 20 and 40 years of age. The FDA has approved LASIK eye surgery for those 18 years and older, but most providers will encourage patients to wait until their mid-20s after their prescription has stabilized.
The truth is, having LASIK doesn't guarantee you'll never have to wear glasses or contacts again. But chances are, you may not need them for a very long time, depending on how old you are when you have your procedure done.
Laser or advanced cataract surgery will provide the same outcome as traditional cataract surgery but the difference is in the tools used and overall method. Laser-Assisted Blade-Free Cataract Surgery both reduces the number of instruments used and increases the precision of the procedure.
LASIK corrects this by reshaping the cornea. However, LASIK can't “correct” or “reverse” cataracts. Since the cataract is a clouding of the natural lens of the eye, it must be surgically removed to restore clarity. Because of this, ophthalmologists usually can't use LASIK eye surgery to correct cataracts.
The laser is not used for all the steps of cataract surgery and the standard techniques of using ultrasound machine and vacuum to remove the cataract is still needed.
The initial recovery process for LASEK laser eye surgery can take slightly longer than LASIK and can be up to three to four days longer. This is why we ask that patients do get as much rest as they can, use the eye drops prescribed by their surgeon and do not return to work for at least 4 to 7 days.
The American Refractive Surgery Council says the procedure's complication rate is less than 1% (though 30% of people may see short-term side effects like dry eyes).
How Safe is LASIK? All surgeries carry some risk of complications and side effects, but LASIK is generally considered a safe procedure with a low complication rate. In fact, LASIK is one of the safest elective surgical procedures available today, with a complication rate estimated to be less than 1%.
What is the LASIK complication rate? The LASIK complication rate is only about 0.3%. The most commonly reported LASIK complications are infection or dry eye that persists for more than six months.
Long-term complications from LASIK are very rare, but some side effects can persist for several months. In very rare instances, a side effect or complication may become permanent.
Unfortunately, no. LASIK does not change the normal aging process of the eye. You are just as susceptible as anyone else to cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, or any other eye condition. LASIK doesn't cause or prevent an eye disease, nor does it hinder something in the future from being treated.