The short answer is that if your dry eye is being treated with artificial tears, eye drops, or in-office procedures, and is comfortably under control, you can have LASIK surgery. One of the most common eye conditions that candidates for LASIK surgery may have is dry eye syndrome. It doesn't immediately disqualify you as a candidate for LASIK surgery if you have dry eye syndrome. During LASIK, the nerves in the cornea are cut, which normally leads to a slower tear response time.
You can have LASIK surgery if you already have dry eyes, but because LASIK can worsen eye moisture, surgeons don't usually operate on people who already have uncontrolled dry eye syndrome. The procedure works by using a special type of laser to change the shape of the dome-shaped tissue (cornea) in the front of the eye. At Northeastern Eye Institute, specialists will examine your eyes and help you determine if you're a candidate for LASIK surgery. According to research conducted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Eye Institute, 28% of participants who had no symptoms of dry eyes before LASIK surgery reported having dry eyes 3 months after surgery.
It usually takes a few months for the eyes to fully heal after surgery and for vision to correct on its own. Determining the extent of dry eye can help doctors assess whether the condition will make LASIK surgery medically impossible. It can be difficult to correctly diagnose dry eye because it is one of many conditions that can make the eyes feel dry or uncomfortable. Therefore, with a period of not wearing contact lenses, using lubricants and changing behaviors, we can improve the ocular surface to the point that they are suitable for laser eye surgery.
Many people think that more personalized eye surgery is only available in London, but that is no longer true. By the way, dry eye is also a side effect of LASIK surgery and can make you a poor candidate for this medical intervention. Although there is currently no cure for dry eyes, symptoms can be controlled with eye drops, warm compresses, certain medications and, in severe cases, surgery. If the LASIK evaluation determines that you have dry eyes or that you are at high risk of developing dry eye syndrome due to the quality of your tears, you will not be approved for LASIK surgery.
LASIK eye surgery can free you from wearing glasses or contact lenses for life, but it may not be right for everyone, especially those with dry eye symptoms. Ophthalmologists at Northeastern Eye Institute can evaluate dry eyes by looking at the surface of a patient's eye and eyelids and watching them blink. Dry eye is a common condition that occurs when the eyes don't produce enough lubrication (tears) to stay moist or when tears don't work properly or are of poor quality.
