Lasik: Frequent Questions

The goal of laser vision correction (LASIK) is to reduce myopia / farsightedness or astigmatism providing similar vision with correction with glasses or contact lenses by reshaping the cornea and this can be done either by:

• Lifting a thin flap of the corneal tissue using a surgical blade (microkeratome device) or using femtosecond laser machine and then reshaping the cornea using an excimer laser
• All laser surface repair 
• Creating a lenticule of cornea tissue by femtosecond laser(FemtoSMILE)

LASIK has been authorized by all scientific and governmental bodies in all rich and poor countries of the world without exception for more than twenty years.

The use of the Excimer laser to correct vision defects has been authorized in Britain since 1988. In 1999, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the legislative body that gives the necessary licenses to all new drugs and processes for the Lasik procedure within the United States of America, after reviewing the results of research and scientific experiments conducted in this regard, and even conducted by the US Navy for pilots using the latest devices.

Laser vision correction (LASIK) is the most surgical procedure performed on the human body after giving injections. It has a very high safety factor that led to the expansion of its spread, for example, about a million LASIK operations are performed every year in the United States alone

• LASIK treats myopia up to 12 degrees (if the thickness of the cornea is suitable)
• LASIK is suitable for treating farsightedness up to six degrees
• Astigmatism can be treated with LASIK even if it is in large degrees up to six degrees.
• LASIK can also be used to correct visual aberrations and visual aging.

Yes, Astigmatism can be treated by up to 6 degrees with modern excimer laser systems

The laser used in the LASIK process is called “Laser Excimer” and it is characterized by extreme accuracy in adjusting the surface of the cornea and its amazing and stable results.

The primary goal of laser vision correction operations is safety and efficiency. Therefore, the procedure is carried out only after it is fully certain that these two objectives have been achieved.

Generally there are general rules for the action of LASIK:

• After the age of 18
• Stability of vision over the course of a year
• Ensure the integrity of the cornea by doing topographic rays of the cornea
• Ensure health of all eye tissues (crystalline lens, retina, optic nerve and pressure inside eye)

LASIK is not done before the age of 18 years and there is no maximum age limit for the possibility of LASIK work provided that it is needed and the eye is free of problems and diseases associated with age

Laser vision correction is a cosmetic/elective procedure instead of using your googles or contact lenses.

Full eye health is checked from visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, intraocular pressure and retina and a complete study of the cornea is done by: dry eye test – pupil test – corneal thickness measurement – corneal topography drawing – visual aberration analysis

It is usual to perform LASIK surgery on the eyes at the same time except in cases where vision is impaired in one eye.

LASIK operation is a replacement for glasses. If the visual strength of the glasses before the operation is 20/20 Vision, then the operation can give you the strength of vision as such.

After LASIK the patient feels a slight fog that does not hinder vision for only several hours, after which the vision becomes normal in normal lighting inside the house and high light during the day.

Some patients may feel light halos surrounding car lights and light poles during the night, but they don’t hinder night driving. Visibility on the roads during the night returns to normal within a week or two.

LASIK surgery is done for those whose vision is stable and therefore the result of the operation remains constant most often.

Sometimes there may be a partial decline in the result of the operation, especially in the presence of severe myopia or severe farsightedness before it and the doctor is always discussed in it before the procedure.

Eye color does not change after LASIK surgery

Before LASIK surgery, contact lenses should not be worn for several days before, and no cosmetics should be applied to the eyelids, and also the patient should not use any perfumes on LASIK day because aromatic vapors hinder the laser from penetrating the patient’s eye.

The process of correcting vision with Excimer laser rays takes several minutes in each eye

You can complete your vision correction without pain in only 5 minutes you will be  discharged from the hospital 15-30 minutes after the surgery. It is a simple and successful process .

LASIK is done after anesthesia of the corneal surface with an anesthetic drop only and the patient is not subjected to general or local anesthesia

The candidate does not need to stay in the hospital but goes home immediately after the completion of LASIK.

First, laser vision correction operations should be defined as cosmetic procedures aimed at getting rid of wearing glasses and not fixing or improving vision as rumored. Therefore, choosing whether or not LASIK works is a personal freedom, as some people (including doctors) may see the lack of need to get rid of glasses and keep them as a kind of form and public personality.

On the other hand, many doctors, led by ophthalmologists, have already undergone LASIK work for themselves or their wives, children and relatives.

LASIK is considered one of the safe operations, but it is preferable to avoid it during pregnancy because there are slight changes to the cornea during pregnancy that disappear completely in the first months after birth.

Tremendous advances in laser vision correction techniques and associated technology have led to a rarity of complications during and after the procedure:

Still Some rare complications may occur as:

The condition of correction of over or under-vision than required: which occurs as a result of the healing of corneal wounds relatively quickly or relatively slowly than the normal range. It is an unpredictable complication. Although simple and rare, they can be treated with glasses, contact lenses or laser complementary surgery. 3-6 months must have passed before the re-operation is decided.

Corneal flap complications: These complications occur in 0.03% of laser vision corrections and include incomplete cutting of the corneal flap, transplantation of surface cells under the corneal patch, thinness, smallness or irregularity of the cut corneal flap. In most of these cases, the corneal flap is returned to its place without completing the surgery and requires re-surgery several months after the first surgery, and in most cases the vision is not affected by what happened.

The excimer laser machine stops during the operation: This trouble occurs in very rare cases, and although these devices are constantly and periodically maintained, it is not considered a serious complication but is very simple as it requires repeating the process again on the same day or within 2-4 weeks after the first operation, without any negative results

Corneal infections: The operation may lead to inflammation of the cornea of the eye. It is  rare much less than prevalence of corneal infections with the use of contact lenses. These infections may lead to fibrosis in the cornea and, in severe cases, a new corneal transplant may be required.

Corneal weakness (keratoconus): which may occur in a ratio of 1:2000 as a result of weakness of the corneal tissue, leading to its protrusion and lack of vision, and can be treated with contact lenses, crosslinking or a new corneal transplant

Corneal surface defects: such as corneal ulcers or persistent corneal scars severe enough to affect vision or irregular astigmatism

High intraocular pressure: due to sensitivity to certain treated drugs, which are usually solved by drops or medical intervention

LASIK can be repeated safely when needed provided that the cornea is studied again as previously presented