What is Lasik Surgery and What Does It Do For You?

Do you know about LASIK surgery and how it can help you? You might have seen advertisements about them on Google or Facebook ads. Well we are here to share with you all about LASIK surgery in Singapore and what it does for you.

LASIK is the short form for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis. I can only imagine how hard of a tough time you just had reading that. It is not easy to pronounce the whole phrase and hence the acronym as it makes it easier to share without having to struggle pronouncing it. 

Well for starters, LASIK is a type of eye surgery that you can go through where a laser is used to sculpt the cornea of your eye to improve short-sighted vision known as myopia and far-sighted vision which is known as hyperopia.

The cornea is a transparent part that is at the front of your eye that allows light into your eyeball and retina which allows you to see. It is similar to a camera’s lens in a way. The image on your retina becomes fuzzy when your cornea begins to go out of shape. 

LASIK will help to correct your misshapen cornea by using a laser to cut off the surface of your cornea and create a thin flap. An additional laser which is known as the excimer laser will come into play and help to shape the middle section of your cornea. After your cornea has been reshaped, the flap will be put back in place to cover your cornea. After it has been done, it naturally adheres to your cornea creating your eye’s own bandage.

This surgery is a 10 to 15 minutes day surgery that requires only a topical anaesthetic eye drops. It will be within a day or two but maximum within a week at most before improvements are made. You can then return back to your life as per normal however, you will be required to stay off all water and contact sports for a month.

Are There Any Side Effects That Comes Along With LASIK

For a short and simple answer it will be yes. For the longer answer it is still a yes. These effects are minimal, bearable and are often temporary. Listed below are the side effects.

• Dry Eyes

This is mainly caused by the flap that was created and the effect of the laser on the cornea which will cut certain corneal nerves which are responsible for the normal tear production. It will take around a month before it resolves by itself.

• Night Vision 

It will be normal to see glares and starbursts at night, it is especially common for those with high myopia or high astigmatism. It will go away gradually over a period of time which will be around nine months to about a year.

• Discomfort

Feeling discomfort and itchiness will be normal and is part of the healing and it will automatically go away by itself within a few hours after the procedure. Sleeping and constantly closing your eyes will help alleviate the sensation. For the itch it should disappear by itself in a few days, using the artificial tears eye drops which are preservative free will help.

What Are The Risks?

This is a very commonly asked question as everyone is surely concerned. Like many other surgeries out there which involve risk, LASIK also has its own set of risks which is listed as below.

• Thinning of your cornea

This is an extremely rare risk however it does happen. Basically the cornea becomes irregular and unstable in a condition called post-LASIK ectasia.

• Problems with future surgery

In the cataract surgery, an artificial lens is replaced with the one in your eye to help your vision be clearer. As your cornea is permanently changed due to LASIK, the calculations of the lens tend to be more difficult as it requires a normal cornea to get the correct reading. You may end up wearing glasses after you are done with your cataract surgery, which you would not have otherwise to do.

• Wrong eye pressure readings 

Having increased pressure on your eyeball is a condition called glaucoma. This can damage your optic nerve which can lead to poor eyesight or the worst case scenario is blindness. LASIK makes it harder to read your eye pressure which can lead to an inaccurate reading.

• Relapsing

There is a chance of your old degree returning back especially if your myopia is extremely high. However odds are, that the improvements are permanent and only require minor adjustments due to the shape of your cornea which can still be altered by LASIK

Who Is LASIK For?

Just like any other procedure, there are candidates who are more ideal than others for LASIK.

• LASIK is for you if:

• You are at least 18 years of age
• You have degrees that have been stabilised for at least a year
• You have no severe health conditions and are currently in good health

If you are younger than 18 it is highly likely that your eye-sight has yet to stabilise. However if you are in your 40s, you may be required to get reading glasses even with LASIK as you age.

• LASIK is not for you if:

• You have very high refractive error, for example if you have myopia of more than 1000 degrees, hyperopia of more than 400 degrees and astigmatism of more than 400 degrees. The results tend to be less satisfactory and predictable with patients that have the conditions mentioned above.
• Have severe dry eye syndrome
• Have corneas that are thin relative to the degree of improvement you would wish to get.
• Having any existing eye injuries or diseases such as cataract, glaucoma, daibetic eyes or retina problems.
• If you are currently pregnant or nursing as hormonal changes occur during pregnancy or nursing and can cause your vision to fluctuate. You may be required to wait around six months after your pregnancy and nursing before going for LASIK

In conclusion, any surgery requires lots of thinking and research. Do the necessary research and ensure that you are suitable for the surgery. Once you are about to undergo the surgery remember to stay relaxed and have complete trust and faith in your LASIK surgeon to complete your LASIK surgery. We hope this article has helped to clear any doubts that you may have had with LASIK.