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LASIK Surgery Overview
LASIK eye surgery is a commonly performed laser refractive procedure to help improve vision. LASIK works by reshaping the front surface of the eye (the cornea) to allow light entering the eye to focus on the retina without needing to wear glasses or corrective lenses.
What Conditions Does LASIK Treat?
LASIK is an excellent solution for someone who is at least 21 years of age who suffers with:
- Nearsightedness
- Farsightedness
- Astigmatism
The degree of the refractive error, as well as the thickness and shape of the cornea, are all factors that can affect candidacy. Those whose corneas are too thin may not be good candidates for LASIK surgery but will most likely qualify for alternative vision correction surgery, such as PRK, also performed by our surgeons at Visionary Eye Doctors.
During our Advanced Ocular Analysis, you will experience thorough diagnostic testing and meet with a surgeon to determine if this procedure is best for you. You may be a good candidate for LASIK if your vision is stable (no prescription change in the last one to two years) and you have healthy eyes.
For more information on LASIK surgery in Washington, DC, and Maryland, contact Visionary Eye Doctors today.
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How Does LASIK Work?
The LASIK procedure usually only takes about 10 to 15 minutes while the following is performed:
- First, anesthetic eye drops are applied to the eye. Your surgeon then uses a femtosecond laser to create a customized corneal flap designed with the precise construction that has been shown to improve safety and visual outcomes.
- The corneal flap is gently lifted back by your surgeon to allow a second laser to reshape the cornea with a computer-controlled laser programmed according to your unique corneal map.
- Next, the inner layers of the cornea receive computer-controlled pulses of cool laser light. The laser light gently reshapes the inner corneal layer to improve and, in many cases, eliminate the need for prescription.
- Following the reshaping of the tissue, your surgeon carefully repositions and aligns the flap to its original position.
- Finally, protective shields are placed over the eye to prevent accidental rubbing as the flap heals naturally and securely over the next several hours.
Is LASIK Right for Me?
LASIK eye surgery can be the right treatment option for many individuals experiencing vision problems. To determine if LASIK surgery might be the right option for you, consider these questions:
- Are you having trouble with distance vision?
- Are you having difficulty reading or seeing well at night?
- Do you have depth perception issues?
- Are you nearsighted, farsighted, or do you have an astigmatism?
- Do you have no systemic illness such as diabetes, glaucoma, or rheumatoid arthritis?
- Has your vision prescription not changed in the last 12 to 24 months?
If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, LASIK may be right for you.
In addition to the questions above, there are other considerations when determining if LASIK surgery is right for you. These considerations include;
- Age: Candidates must be at least 21 years old
- General Health: LASIK candidates must be in good general health and should not have certain health problems, including uncontrolled diabetes, autoimmune or collagen vascular disease, or take any medication or have any condition that compromises the immune response. Please make your eye doctor aware of any mental health conditions, as these may also affect your LASIK surgery or recovery.
- Eye health: Candidates should be free of eye diseases, including keratoconus, glaucoma, cataracts, corneal disease, and certain retinal and optic nerve diseases. LASIK surgery candidates should not have certain eye conditions, including herpes simplex and herpes zoster.
- Eye problems: LASIK patients should make their eye doctor aware of certain eye problems, including amblyopia (lazy eye), strabismus (muscle imbalance), or any recurrent, residual or active eye conditions that may influence healing. Other conditions that should be discussed with the doctor include keloid scarring with previous surgical healing, back problems, and claustrophobia.
- Eye injury: Patients should not have any eye infections or injuries.
- Dry eye condition: Patients should not continuously suffer from dry eyes.
- Stable vision: A candidate’s vision must be stable for at least one year prior to the procedure date.
- Contacts: Prior to your LASIK surgery consultation and LASIK procedure, you must not wear contact lenses for a certain length of time. The precise length will be determined by your doctor on an individual basis. This ensures corneal stability and accuracy of your prescription prior to the LASIK surgery procedure.
- Corneal thickness plays an important role in determining proper candidacy for LASIK. Due to the nature of the procedure, candidates must have a minimum corneal thickness of approximately 0.5 mm.
- Nursing/pregnancy: Candidates should not be nursing or pregnant when undergoing the LASIK procedure. Hormones may affect the stability of your prescription, so pregnant or nursing women are not eligible to pursue LASIK surgery until three menstrual cycles after nursing has been discontinued.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is LASIK painful?
LASIK should not cause you any pain. Numbing eyedrops will block those pain sensations. Your eyes may feel a bit scratchy afterward, but no pain medications are typically required, and you should be able to return to work or your regular activities the next day.
What are the risks of LASIK?
Complications are rare, but like all surgical procedures, LASIK does carry some risk, including infection that may damage your cornea or result in some vision loss. However, LASIK is cleared by the FDA and is one of the most common and safest procedures in the medical field.