What is LASIK?
LASIK is a type of refractive surgery. This kind of surgery uses a laser to treat vision problems caused by refractive errors. You have a refractive error when your eye does not refract (bend) light properly.
For you to see clearly, light rays must travel through your cornea and lens. The cornea and lens refract the light so it lands on the retina. The retina turns light into signals that travel to your brain and become images. With refractive errors, the shape of your cornea or lens keeps light from bending properly. When light is not focused on the retina as it should be, your vision is blurry.
With LASIK, a laser is used to change the shape of your cornea. This improves the way light rays are focused on the retina. LASIK is used to treat nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism.
The goal of LASIK is to correct your refractive error to improve your vision. LASIK may reduce your need for eyeglasses or contact lenses. In some cases, it may even allow you to do without them completely.
Who is a good candidate for LASIK?
To have LASIK surgery, you need to meet certain requirements. Here are some of them:
- You should be 18 years or older (ideally, over 21 years old, when vision is more likely to have stopped changing).
- Your eye prescription should not have changed much in the last year.
- Your refractive error must be one that can be treated with LASIK.
- Your corneas need to be thick enough and healthy, and your overall eye health must be generally good.
- You need to have realistic expectations about what LASIK can and cannot do for you.
