However, as we age naturally, most people’s vision deteriorates. Your vision may blur again as you age since LASIK cannot stop this. How long these changes last after your LASIK procedure depends on your age and whether you have any underlying progressive eye conditions.
LASIK: What is it?
At the cornea, when light hits the eye, the transparent outer layer of your eye focuses on the retina at the back of your eye. The term for this is refraction. When it isn’t bent correctly, light isn’t focused on your retina, which causes hazy vision. An example of this is a refractive error. The three basic categories of refractive defects can be corrected using LASIK:
- Nearsightedness (myopia)
- Farsightedness (hyperopia)
- Astigmatism
LASIK can treat these disorders by reshaping your cornea with lasers. Once completed, the light is bent correctly and focused on your retina. As a result, both up-close and far-distant vision is sharp and clear. Your vision will be corrected so that you won’t need to wear contacts or glasses anymore.
Can LASIK make your eyes worse?
Even after laser surgery, vision can and will alter even though LASIK is permanent. After receiving eye surgery, visual changes could result from various factors.
- ASTIGMATISM, NEARSIGHTEDNESS, OR FARSIGHTEDNESS PROGRESSION
Throughout your lifetime, the eye changes. Once you visit an eye doctor and receive a new, more robust prescription indicating that your nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism is worsening, we frequently advise patients to postpone visual stabilization until adulthood. Many people postpone getting LASIK after their prescription has remained stable for a year. One of the reasons LASIK is typically not advised during pregnancy is that it can alter vision.
Your vision will be corrected by laser eye surgery at the time of the procedure, but any underlying vision problems may worsen. The good news is that most of these changes are minimal and take years to manifest. Even so, your vision will be sharper than it otherwise would be. Even if your nearsightedness or farsightedness increases, you will still have more excellent vision than you would have if you had not undergone laser eye surgery.
- PRESBYOPIA
Presbyopia is one of the main factors contributing to vision alterations following LASIK eye surgery. As people age, their eye lens stiffens and becomes more challenging, which causes the condition. The eye has a more challenging time focusing on close-up objects. Early symptoms of this developing illness include holding books and periodicals at arm’s length from the eyes. Almost everyone experiences presbyopia, which is a standard component of aging. Many people start to develop symptoms around the age of 40.
Regardless of whether you underwent LASIK, presbyopia will develop. And if you’ve had laser eye surgery to improve your vision, presbyopia may make your formerly perfect vision less so. It wouldn’t have happened with or without your LASIK procedure and is not a result of it. Surgery, contact lenses or reading glasses are all options for treating presbyopia.
- PREGNANCY
Pregnancy-related hormonal changes can impact the eyes, and some women experience eye alterations. These eyesight alterations are frequently transient and go away soon after delivery. Some women report that their vision has changed permanently. The vision changes that many LASIK patients experience before becoming pregnant will disappear after giving birth without additional treatment.
The best time to get laser vision correction may be if you plan to get pregnant. Many of the painful pregnancy-related ocular symptoms are reduced by LASIK. Many pregnant women experience dry eye, which makes some of them uncomfortable wearing contact lenses. Pregnancy can be significantly more pleasant with LASIK since it often eliminates the need for contact in patients. Although it is typically not advised, laser eye surgery can be safely carried out before conception.
After LASIK, your vision
One of the many advantages of refractive surgery is improved vision. Following their surgeries, our patients love having 20/20 vision and life without glasses. Many people won’t ever need glasses or contacts again. After surgery, your vision might change, but LASIK will still be helpful even if it does. Most patients report superior eyesight for a lifetime following their LASIK surgeries, and visual changes are often mild.
What might go wrong – Dangers of LASIK
The following are a few potential side effects and hazards of LASIK:
- The flap heals poorly. Infection or too many tears may be to blame for this.
- Irregular corneal healing pattern under the flap. Both discomfort and eyesight issues may result from this.
- Astigmatism. Because tissue isn’t removed equally, your eye ends up being shaped unevenly.
- Severe dry eye disease. The lack of tears in your eye might result in discomfort and vision issues.
- Persistent issues with seeing in low light. Halos and glare from this can make it difficult to see at night or in low light.
- Tissue is removed either too much or not enough. Over- or under-correction causes results to fall short of perfection.
- Loss of vision Loss or deterioration of vision is an uncommon but possible occurrence.
What to anticipate the following LASIK?
You may experience one or more of the following side effects following the surgery, but they should subside within a few weeks to months:
- Foggy or fuzzy vision
- itching, dry eyes
- responsiveness to light
- optical disturbances, including halos, brightness, and double vision
After LASIK, it’s crucial not to rub or prod your eye because doing so could cause the flap to migrate and impede the healing process.
After having LASIK, you frequently won’t need to wear your glasses or contacts any longer. If your vision isn’t wholly corrected, you could still require them for activities like reading or driving. Your cornea is permanently and irrevocably reshaped by LASIK. However, this does not imply that you will always have a clear vision. Regular aging-related changes to the eyes cannot be halted by LASIK.
Nearly everyone requires reading glasses around 40 because presbyopia has caused close-up vision to become hazy. LASIK cannot treat this issue.
A doctor should be seen when:-
If any of the following occur following LASIK, consult a doctor straight away:
- Added symptoms appear
- Beyond the usual haziness or blurriness that follows the surgery, vision deteriorates.
- Acute pain starts to appear.
- After having the treatment, you are struck or prodded in the eye.
