The 5 Likely Reasons Someone Won't Qualify For LASIK | Dr. Lee (2024)

FAQs

The 5 Likely Reasons Someone Won't Qualify For LASIK | Dr. Lee? ›

If your pupils are large, especially in dim light, LASIK may not be appropriate. Surgery may result in debilitating symptoms such as glare, halos, starbursts and ghost images. Glaucoma. The surgical procedure can raise your eye pressure, which can make glaucoma worse.

If your pupils are large, especially in dim light, LASIK may not be appropriate. Surgery may result in debilitating symptoms such as glare, halos, starbursts and ghost images. Glaucoma. The surgical procedure can raise your eye pressure, which can make glaucoma worse.

Those deemed not suitable for laser eye surgery usually have a particularly high prescription, a compromising medical condition, are taking certain medications or are under 21 years of age.

Suggested Fix: Seek alternative surgery. Unfortunately, there's no way to add more cornea, so you will not be eligible for LASIK. But other surgeries such as PRK and RLE can provide vision as clear as LASIK, although your recovery may be a little more challenging.

As many as 20 percent of patients interested in getting LASIK do not qualify for the procedure. Factors that can disqualify you from LASIK include prescription instability, taking certain medications, and pre-existing diseases and eye conditions.

Typically, eye doctors will set their limits to +6 for farsightedness, -12 for nearsightedness, and 6 diopters for astigmatism. However, not all laser strengths are the same, so there's some wiggle room. Plus, someone with a -12 prescription might be approved for LASIK while someone with a -9 prescription isn't.

A patient may not be a good candidate for LASIK if they have thin corneas, an irregular shaped cornea, corneal scarring, or other unusual findings. In those cases, your eye doctor may recommend photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) surgery.

The surgery may not be ideal if you have an autoimmune disease that causes dry eye. Other conditions that can disqualify a patient are diabetes, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, cataracts, and glaucoma. To be a good candidate for laser vision correction, you must be an adult over 18 years old.

Because LASIK is an elective surgery, more often than not it is not covered by insurance. However, some non-standard vision insurance plans, such as VSP or EyeMed, may offer benefits or discounts. Some of these benefits might include additional services and savings for people who are interested in LASIK.

Who Cannot have laser surgery? ›

Those who are not in good general health.

A dry eye may not heal well and has a higher risk of post-surgery infection. Other conditions such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, glaucoma or cataracts often affect results.

Yes, your vision can be potentially too bad for LASIK. LASIK is available to a variety of patients, but patients will generally qualify for treatment if their vision falls between -0.5 D to -8.0 D myopia.

Most clinicians will not treat greater than +4.00 dioptres, even if the laser (as in the case of the WaveLight Allegretto) is approved up to +6.00. If the patient is greater than 50 years of age, refractive lens exchange (RLE) may be a better option.

Millions of people have gotten laser eye surgery to correct their vision, and the LASIK success rate is over 90%.

Photorefractive keratectomy

Vision improvement with PRK is similar to that of LASIK. PRK may be a better option than LASIK for people with thin or flat corneas, or for athletes and those with an active lifestyle or career (such as a pilot or race car driver) who are concerned about dislodging the flap after surgery.

LASIK works for mild-to-severe nearsightedness and mild-to-moderate farsightedness and astigmatism. If you don't meet one or more of these criteria, you're not a good candidate, and you'll need to explore other options.

The Prescription You Need for Laser Eye Surgery

The average refractive prescription that qualifies for laser eye surgery is: Nearsighted ness up to -8.0 diopters. Astigmatism up to -3.0 diopters. Nearsightedness with astigmatism up to -9.0 diopters.

Your eye prescription should not have changed much in the last year. Your refractive error must be one that can be treated with LASIK. Your corneas need to be thick enough and healthy, and your overall eye health must be generally good. You need to have realistic expectations about what LASIK can and cannot do for you.

Avoid pools, hot tubs, saunas, and lakes for at least 3 weeks. Avoid watching TV, reading, or using the computer for the first 24 hours as these activities may strain your eyes.