Is LASIK Right for You?
No one can guess if your eyes are suitable for LASIK – not yourself, your mother, or even an Optometrist. There is more involved than just knowing your refractive error (nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism) and your prescription. The only way to know for sure if LASIK is right for you is by having a comprehensive LASIK evaluation.
Often we find that our patients spend valuable amounts of time researching, reading or talking about LASIK with friends and family, only to find out that they are not a good candidate for the procedure. This can be a major disappointment. The best way to avoid this is by having a full and comprehensive LASIK evaluation.
During the evaluation, we look at four determining factors in your eyesight:
- Your Age – At Donelson Eye Associates, we usually perform LASIK on people between the ages of 18 or older. Eyesight normally stabilizes somewhere between the ages of 18 and 20. People over age 60 are not ruled out for LASIK but are more likely to have other eye problems such as cataracts or presbyopia, and the available treatments can often achieve many of the same results as LASIK.
- The Health of Your Eyes – There are two main eyesight issues that could prevent you from having LASIK: Keratoconus and Cataracts. Keratoconus is a disease of the cornea that can often be misdiagnosed. To prevent turning away a good candidate for LASIK, we will always double check this diagnosis.
Cataracts are the clouding of your lens, and while they won’t always keep you from having LASIK, we will always verify the type and location of the cataract during our LASIK evaluation. Your candidacy for LASIK will depend upon the size, type and location of the cataract. - The Thickness of Your Cornea – The first step in the LASIK procedure is creating a corneal flap which requires a thick enough cornea to maintain strength and shape. Thin corneas can result in complications, however, with advancements in technology we can offer other solutions for vision correction if you have thin corneas.
- Your General Health – Some physical illnesses or conditions can rule out LASIK. Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, or Fibromyalgia (FMS) can indicate a compromised autoimmune system, which might complicate the healing process. Osteoarthritis or age-related arthritis is not a problem as far as LASIK is concerned. If you have any questions about which type of arthritis you have, give us a call and we will help you sort it out.
Diabetes can also rule out LASIK, as unstable blood sugar levels affect the precise measurements necessary for the procedure. Also, diabetes can cause diabetic retinopathy that may compromise vision due to changes in the retina. This too may be a LASIK contraindication. We’ll help you establish whether or not diabetes is an issue at the consultation.
Pregnancy for some women can cause temporary changes in their eyes. For that reason, we normally do not perform LASIK during pregnancy as we want to make sure we are treating the person’s real prescription and not a temporary change; this is decided at Dr. Donelson’s discretion. We can usually treat new mothers as soon as 6 months post-partum and there is no need to wait until after nursing is completed.
What if I am not a LASIK Candidate?
If you are not a good candidate for LASIK, we also provide other vision correction procedures that can produce the same result as LASIK. After a full evaluation, Dr. Donelson will be able to determine which procedure may be best for you.
- PRK – treats the cornea without the need for a flap
- Implantable Contact Lens (ICLs)– for nearsightedness that is too severe for LASIK or PRK
- Refractive Lens Exchange (RLE) – for farsighted patients over the age of 40
Schedule your Free LASIK Consultation to find out if you are a good candidate for LASIK or take our Online LASIK Self Evaluation.