Are You a Candidate for Lasik Surgery?
For many people who are fed up with wearing contact lenses or glasses on a daily basis, LASIK surgery can be a very attractive alternative. LASIK is a procedure that uses an excimer laser to reshape your cornea to eliminate irregularities and help improve retinal focusing.
Laser eye surgery has a very good success rate. The vast majority of LASIK patients have been very happy with the results. However, as with all surgery, the benefits come with their share of risks. Depending on your situation, these risks may or may not be worth the reward for you. It is important to discuss these risks with an experienced laser eye surgeon to determine if you are an ideal candidate for LASIK surgery.
The Ideal LASIK Candidate
LASIK is ideally suited to improve moderate refractive errors such as:
· Nearsightedness
· Farsightedness
· Astigmatism
If your refractive errors are very severe (if you have a strong prescription), the surgery may not be as effective. You might want to discuss alternative refractive surgery procedures with your LASIK surgeon if you have a very strong prescription.
In general, a good candidate for LASIK:
· Is 21 or older
· Is in good overall health
· Does not have any corneal disease
· Is not pregnant or nursing a child
· Has reasonable expectations for the results and understands the risks involved
Factors that Hurt your Candidacy for LASIK
There are several factors that may make laser eye surgery a less-than-ideal option for you. The risks associated with LASIK increase if you have:
· An immune system disease: Diseases such as HIV or rheumatoid arthritis, which impact your immune system, may complicate the healing process after surgery. Immune system diseases also increase the likelihood of infection and many other complications following LASIK.
· Dry eyes: Dry eyes are a common complication following LASIK. If you chronically experience dry eyes before your surgery, it will most likely prevent proper healing and magnify this complication once surgery is complete.
· Severe corneal irregularities: If you have very thin or abnormally shaped corneas, it will be difficult for your ophthalmologist to perform the surgery. There will also be a greater risk of overcorrections or undercorrections in your surgery.
· Unstable vision: Your vision must be stable for at least two years in order to qualify for LASIK surgery. If your vision is currently fluctuating, you should not have the surgery.
· Large pupils: Large pupils can lead to serious complications with night vision after LASIK, such as glare, halos, and star bursts.
The Cost Factor
One final factor to consider is cost. While LASIK has come down in price over the years, it is still an expensive procedure. Since this is considered elective surgery, most insurance companies will not reimburse you. You may want to make sure that LASIK fits into your budget before choosing to go ahead with the surgery.
About Author
If you are considering LASIK surgery in the Portland, Oregon area, please visit the website of 20/20 Institute today to schedule a free consultation.
Comments
12 Responses to “Are You a Candidate for Lasik Surgery?”
Leave a Reply
That’s quite cheap to permanently correct your eyes.
The ophthalmologist will be the best judge but generally speaking, the best candidates tend to be the myopes.
You may be, and the best is to get your eyes checked up before proceeding to surgery.
Thank you.
Regards,
Dr.Yeoh Phee Liang
Consultant Ophthalmologist
Website : http://www.advancevision.net.my
Tel : +603 – 7724 1392
You may be, and the best is to get your eyes checked up before proceeding to surgery.
Thank you.
Regards,
Dr.Yeoh Phee Liang
Consultant Ophthalmologist
Website : http://www.advancevision.net.my
Tel : +603 – 7724 1392
best and cheap surgeons are found in India no matter what surgery you want. Most people these days go there for experienced doctors.
If you indeed have 'progressive myopia' and you find that each time you visit the optometrist your script has changed then you are probably not a suitable candidate at the moment.
To do the surgery they like to see that your script has become stable and stopped progressing. Otherwise after they do the surgery your eyes are just going to keep getting worse.
Don't worry you are probably only a few years away having a stable prescription (and LASIK procedures will probably be even better given a few years). Once your script has become stable your suitability will depend on corneal thickness ect.
The "ideal candidate" for Lasik surgery would have to be fully grown(if not your eyesight changes and might have to have another surgery) like 18-24 years old and has to be willing to pay the money alot of it.
Go to an ophthalmologist for LASIK and get your eyes examined. Consultations to see if you are a candidate for LASIK are usually free with no obligation to have the surgery. There are some optometrists that tell their patients they are not candidates for LASIK so they don't lose out on patients/customers. I've heard that from quite a few patients at the center I work for.
That is something that only an ophthalmologist can answer you at the time you go for a consultation at a laser eye clinic.
Corneal thickness, tear flow, are a couple of other things that have to be measured , as well as your corneal health at the time, as well as the correction you need.
The best idea is to get an opinion from a surgeon or optometrist by having some sort of consultation. During your consultation, ensure that you have told them everything so that there are no problems. If you are taking prescription medicine, or if you have some allergies, ask if this will have any effect. Tell them your medical history and your family’s medical history, whether there is any glaucoma among relatives or if you had any eye injury.
It depends on a lot of things such as stable prescription, pupil size, thickness of cornea, age, ect.
But, docs can do lasik even though you are farsighted in one eye and nearsighted in the other.
Schedule a consultation. It takes about a half an hour and 99% offer a FREE consultation.