There is a good chance that someone you know has had a LASIK procedure to permanently correct his or her vision. As of 2011, about 16 million LASIK vision correction procedures have been performed since its approval by the FDA, making LASIK one of the most commonly performed medical procedures in the world. It is no wonder than many people are opting to get rid of their glasses and contacts for good with laser vision correction. However, just like with any other medical procedure, there are good candidates as well as not-so-good candidates.
If you and your eyes are in good health, with the only problem being that of poorly focused vision– you’re either farsighted, nearsighted, or have astigmatism — then you are likely a great candidate for LASIK treatment.
However, there are some patients for whom LASIK is not recommended, no matter how skilled the eye surgeon is. Patients who have severe refractive errors — in regards to farsightedness, nearsightedness, or astigmatism — may not be able to completely correct their vision using LASIK. Patients who are under 18 years old are generally asked to wait until their 18th birthday. Laser vision correction is also not recommended for those who:
- Had a sizable change in their prescription for glasses or contacts within the past year as this may indicate that your vision is still changing; you should not correct your vision until your prescription stabilizes and you have had a 0.5 diopter change or less over the past two years
- Have a medical condition, such as poorly controlled autoimmune disease, or are taking medications, such as steroids, that can interfere with the healing process after a LASIK procedure
- Are pregnant or breastfeeding
- Naturally have exceedingly thin corneas, as there must be ample cornea to work with
- Have a corneal disease known as keratoconus, which is a condition of improper corneal strength
- Have had eye inflammation, severe dry eyes, herpes of the eye, or any other eye disease- you should make sure that your eye doctor knows about your recent medical history as certain eye diseases pose additional risks and complications for LASIK procedures
Are you in the Los Angeles area and want to know if you are a candidate for laser vision correction? Please contact Dr. Caster at (310) 274-1221 or fill out our contact form on: https://www.castereye.com/contactus.php.