Many people know how expensive it can be to wear glasses. Fashionable lenses come and go, causing people to desire the latest trends that will match their wardrobe. Other people wear their frames out from regular use, leaving them desperate for new frames every year. Some people even start to lose their glasses, which induces them to buy a new pair every now and then. The LASIK surgeon in Orange County understands all the hassles and extra costs that make people consider other vision correction options that are available to them.
Some LASIK Orange County patients will ditch their specs completely and try less conspicuous eye correction methods such as contact lenses. However, as the LASIK surgeon Orange County explains, these are not designed to be a permanent eye correction solution and could even worsen issues when they are worn for too long or too regularly.
Do I Qualify For LASIK?
Before you spend good money on a pair of new eyeglasses or contacts, it is a good idea to weigh your available options. The LASIK surgeon Orange County says that the best way to know whether you are a good candidate for LASIK is to have a thorough examination by a board-certified ophthalmologist, such as Dr. Ferzaad Moosa, who specializes in corneal laser refractive surgery. A highly trained eye surgeon like Dr. Moosa can let you know if your prescription is treatable.
Nevertheless, your prescription is just one aspect of qualifying for LASIK. There are many other points of criteria that a patient has to meet to get the go-ahead from their eye doctor.
Listed below are the five factors that are essential to becoming a qualified candidate for LASIK surgery.
Is Your Prescription Within A Treatable Range?
The first thing your eye doctor will want to know is the prescription of your glasses since it is one of the best indicators to see if someone is suitable for a LASIK procedure. An individual’s prescription sometimes referred to as “refractive error,” is measured in diopters. Eye doctors use a diopter as a metric unit to indicate the strength of the lens that is required to correct a person’s vision. In fact, on your prescription card, you will see numbers that are in diopters. When there is a minus next to the numbers, it signifies near-sightedness and the plus sign represents far-sightedness.
Normally, eye surgeons can use the most state-of-the-art lasers and screening tools to treat up to +6.00 of farsightedness or hyperopia, up to -12.00 of near-sightedness, and up to 6 diopters of astigmatism. However, these exact numbers depend on the clinic, the technology, the expertise, and the type of treatment they have available.
Is Your Prescription Stable And Are Your Eyes Healthy?
You will know that you have a stable prescription when the numbers on your prescription card remain the same for at least two uninterrupted years. This is one of the reasons that, even though LASIK is approved for anyone who is 18 years or older, many eye doctors advise their patients to wait to have LASIK until they are in their mid-twenties.
When you are around this age, you have reached “ocular maturity” which means that a person’s prescription is not likely to change for a while. However, age is not the only factor that plays a role in having a stable prescription. The other circumstances that may affect a person’s prescription are general health, medication use, and pregnancy. Fortunately, many of these circumstances are temporary and won’t completely disqualify a person from receiving treatment.
What Is the Shape And Thickness Of Your Corneas?
LASIK is very different from eyeglasses and contact lenses since it is a permanent vision correction method that works by reshaping the cornea. The eye’s cornea is the transparent dome-like surface that helps the eye to focus light to create an image on the retina.
If your cornea is too thin or misshapen, it may cause issues with your vision. Typically, a LASIK evaluation at Excel laser Vision Insitute can help to evaluate the thickness and shape of the cornea, and whether it is safe to go ahead with the treatment.
What Is The Size Of Your Pupil?
During your LASIK consultation, your eye surgeon will most likely want to know the size of your pupil. If you have naturally large pupils, for example, you might have a higher risk of experiencing side effects following LASIK surgery, such as glare or halos at night. However, this cannot necessarily be determined by just looking at your pupils in the mirror so you should still seek the advice of a LASIK surgeon. Not everybody with large pupils is excluded from having LASIK, especially at clinics with advanced technology.
Do You Have Any Eye Conditions?
Existing conditions such as dry eye can sometimes worsen with LASIK surgery and should be considered before going ahead with the procedure. LASIK evaluations will check that you are able to look continually at a fixed spot or object for at least a minute. This will enable the eye surgeon to perform LASIK correctly.
If you have certain eye conditions such as glaucoma or cataracts, as well as any other type of eye infection or injury, this can interfere with LASIK surgery. Communicate these conditions with your eye surgeon so that he or she can carefully consider them before going ahead with your eye surgery.
There are also many other procedures besides LASIK that can be used to fix common vision problems. A well-trained eye refractive surgeon such as Dr. Ferzaad Moosa at the Excel Laser Vision Institute can help you decide on the best option for your vision goals. If you have any more questions about LASIK eye correction procedures, give the Excel Laser Vision Institute a call at + (818) 907-8606 to arrange an appointment today.
