Eye Conditions that Prevent Patients from Being Good LASIK Candidates
At Deen-Gross Eye Centers in Merrillville, LASIK of the highest standard is available to appropriate candidates, the number of whom has only grown as the procedure has become safer and more accurate in recent years. While advanced technology has enabled patients who might have been poor candidates for LASIK ten years ago to undergo the procedure with outstanding results, there are still some patients for whom even bladeless, custom LASIK is not recommended. Among the patients who might not be permitted to undergo LASIK at our vision center are those with certain eye conditions.
Which Eye Conditions Can Disqualify Someone from Undergoing LASIK?
The success of the LASIK procedure is highly dependent upon thorough screening of candidates prior to surgery. At Deen-Gross Eye Centers, we perform meticulous evaluations of the eyes and of patients’ ocular and overall health histories before recommending LASIK. There is no sense in taking chances with a patient’s vision, especially when there are alternative treatments that produce similarly impressive results for patients who are not good candidates for LASIK.
Among the eye conditions that can disqualify a patient from undergoing LASIK are:
- Irregularly shaped or extremely thin corneas
- Abnormally large pupils
- Scars on the cornea
- Corneal or other eye infections
- Diabetic retinopathy
- Retinal detachment and other retinal conditions
- Glaucoma
- Keratoconus
- Chronic dry eye syndrome
- Ocular herpes
Patients with cataracts may be eligible to undergo LASIK after the cataracts have been removed and replaced with premium intraocular lenses, or IOLs. At that point, however, LASIK would only be necessary if there is residual refractive error after the placement of the IOLs. In most cases, patients achieve excellent unaided vision at all distances with the IOLs and therefore would not benefit from LASIK surgery.
Alternatives to LASIK
If you have an eye condition that precludes you from undergoing LASIK, you may still have other vision correction procedures available to you. For instance, patients with thin or irregularly shaped corneas may still be suitable candidates for PRK, a procedure identical to LASIK except in how the underlying corneal tissue is accessed. While LASIK requires the creation of a flap in the cornea, PRK does not. PRK entails a longer, slightly less comfortable healing period than LASIK, but it is a safer procedure for patients with abnormal corneas and certain other eye conditions.
If an eye condition is discovered during your LASIK screening, we will advise you of your options and provide you with information on how that condition can be treated. In addition to laser eye surgery, our eye care experts are able to treat a range of eye conditions, so we may be able to help you even if you aren’t eligible for LASIK surgery.
Schedule Your LASIK Screening
If you would like to learn whether you are a suitable candidate for LASIK, we invite you to contact Deen-Gross Eye Centers today. We would be pleased to answer any questions you might have and assist you in scheduling your LASIK screening at one of our three convenient office locations.