Can LASIK Cure Myopia?

 

Myopia, or extreme nearsightedness, is the most common refractive defect. It affects the perception of nearby items while making distant objects look clear. LASIK treats astigmatism, hyperopia, and myopia by reshaping the cornea. Your doctor will fold back a little flap of tissue from the surface of your cornea.

What is myopia?

Myopia is a common visual impairment that causes difficulty viewing distant things. It happens when the cornea, the eye's clear outer layer, curves too much or the eyeball grows too long. To see clearly, the light that enters the eye focuses in front of the retina. Myopics frequently have no difficulty reading up close, but they must squint or shift their heads to see clearly at a distance. This increases the risk of serious medical problems, such as glaucoma and retinal detachment, and can cause eye strain. Myopia usually begins in childhood and gradually worsens. People with myopia have two alternatives for vision correction: contact lenses or spectacles.

Get laser treatments such as PRK or LASIK, which change the shape of the cornea and increase the eye's ability to focus on both close and distant objects.

How does LASIK treat myopia?

LASIK surgery reshapes the cornea. Furthermore, it can correct astigmatism. A laser shortens the eye, allowing light to focus on the retina by removing tissue. This reduces or eliminates the need for glasses or contact lenses while enhancing nearsighted vision. During the procedure, your eyes will be covered with antibiotic ointment to aid in their recovery. Your vision may be hazy at first, but it should improve fast. It is critical to wait a few weeks before undergoing LASIK procedure to use contacts. Wearing contacts might cause your cornea to alter shape, causing measurements to be incorrect. Severe myopia is bad for your eyes since it raises the chance of retinal detachment and other serious complications. As a result, those with extreme myopia are not recommended to get LASIK. As an alternative, consider LASEK or PRK surgery. These treatments are more successful for curing myopia.

What are the risks of LASIK for myopia?

Nearsightedness can be permanently repaired surgically using LASIK, which does not go away with time. It can also help patients reduce their dependency on contact lenses or glasses. Another way to treat myopia is to eat a healthy diet and practice eye exercises. These can help to improve eyesight and strengthen weak eye muscles. LASIK can treat both astigmatism and nearsightedness/farsightedness. Severe myopia patients, on the other hand, would not benefit from the treatment and may face further complications in the future. Myopic individuals are more prone to encounter glare and halos following surgery. Furthermore, people may lose their ability to see well and need time off work to recover.

In certain cases, a surgeon may recommend laser-based PRK or LASEK treatments that do not require a corneal flap. They might also use a treatment called phakic lens implants. A surgeon permanently implants these silicone or plastic lenses in the eyes.

What are the advantages of LASIK for myopia?

People with myopia who undergo laser surgery to change the shape of their cornea may be able to reduce their reliance on corrective lenses such as eyeglasses and contact lenses. Astigmatism and farsightedness are two other refractive disorders that can be improved with this therapy. LASIK is a permanent surgical surgery, thus it will not degrade over time. It has the potential to improve nearsighted vision to near-normal levels or higher. It can also assist with presbyopia, which increases with age and makes it difficult to focus on close-up things. LASIK is not an ideal solution, however. It may still create blurred or blurry vision since it alters the shape of your cornea. After surgery, you may notice glare, halos around lights, and double vision. These side effects may last for a few days or weeks, but they should not create any long-term problems. They may need to be treated with eye drops or other methods.