LASIK eye surgery is a popular procedure that can help improve your vision and reduce or even eliminate your need for glasses or contact lenses. Not everyone is a good candidate for this type of surgery.
You need to understand the factors that determine whether or not you are a good candidate for surgery. Here are the criteria you need to meet to qualify for eye surgery:
Eye Health
If you have an eye condition such as cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, or retinopathy, LASIK may not be a viable option for you. The procedure might require a certain amount of healthy corneal tissue for a successful outcome.
If your eye health is compromised, your doctor may suggest alternative procedures. They might recommend PRK or even refer you to a specialist for further evaluation.
To guarantee the best possible outcome, you can provide your doctor with a full medical history. With it, they can make an informed decision on whether or not LASIK surgery is right for them.
General Health
The most common issues that can affect the success of your surgery are diabetes; autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and HIV/AIDS; and other conditions that affect your immune system.
You must have good overall health and no medical condition that might affect your ability to heal after the procedure.
Discuss any of these conditions with your doctor before the procedure to confirm that you are a good candidate.
Note that certain lifestyles may prevent you from being an ideal candidate for LASIK eye surgery. If you work in a hazardous environment where dust, debris, and fumes are regularly present, you may need to reconsider the option.
Prescription
This can be determined through a series of tests performed by an ophthalmologist or optometrist. The measurements used to evaluate your vision are called diopters. Depending on your test results, you may or may not be able to have LASIK surgery.
Patients with milder prescriptions could be better candidates for LASIK surgery than those with more severe prescriptions. Your doctor can evaluate your prescription and determine whether or not you are a suitable candidate for the procedure.
Vision Stability
You should have had a consistent prescription for at least a year prior to the surgery. If your prescription constantly changes, your eye surgeon may not feel comfortable performing the procedure.
If your eyesight has declined rapidly within the past year, you may not be a suitable candidate for LASIK surgery. Rapidly declining vision can indicate underlying eye issues that may interfere with the procedure’s success.
To certify you are a suitable candidate for the procedure, you can provide your eye surgeon with all relevant information about your vision history and lifestyle.
Pregnancy and Nursing
A pregnant woman’s body undergoes significant hormonal changes during her pregnancy. These fluctuations can affect the shape of the eyes. They can cause vision problems that may not have been present before pregnancy began.
Consider the risks of LASIK before making a decision. Doctors might recommend waiting until after your pregnancy has ended before considering LASIK surgery.
Women who are breastfeeding their babies may also need to wait before having LASIK surgery. Breastfeeding causes shifts in hormone levels, just like those caused by pregnancy. There could be changes in eyesight that were not previously present or anticipated.
Certain medications used during a LASIK procedure could also be transferred through breast milk to the baby if nursing mothers opt to have the surgery.
Dry Eyes
Dry eyes can cause itchiness, burning, and discomfort in your eyes. It might occur when the tear glands fail to produce enough tears or when there is an imbalance of water and oil in your natural tears.
This can cause problems during surgery because it might increase the risk of infection due to a lack of lubrication in the eye.
You can take steps to improve your dry eye symptoms before surgery. You can try tear duct plugs or punctal occlusion. This involves blocking off your tear ducts so that your natural tears stay in your eye longer rather than evaporating quickly.
This can help keep your eyes lubricated throughout the procedure, reducing the risk associated with dryness.
Another technique that might be used is called scleral lenses or contact lenses. They can act as a barrier between the eye and its environment while allowing oxygen exchange.
By wearing scleral lenses before surgery, you can maintain good moisture levels in your eye while still allowing airflow into it, which is necessary for optimal vision following surgery.
Get Ready for Your Lasik Eye Surgery
The best way to identify whether you are a good candidate for the surgery is through a LASIK consultation. During the consultation, the eye doctor might examine the key determinants.
They can offer other options to get the best vision if you fail to pass the eligibility test.
