If you are tired of using glasses or contacts to improve your vision, you might be a good candidate for LASIK. At the Kagan Institute in Los Angeles and Encino, California, we can use this unique technique to address farsightedness, nearsightedness, and astigmatism. Your recovery period will be brief, and you will be able to enjoy the benefits of your eye procedure for a long time.
What Is the Right Age for LASIK?
LASIK is a procedure that is used to correct a wide range of vision issues. Scientists have been using this technique, which is also known as Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis, to enhance eyesight for more than two decades. There is no specific age when you should receive this procedure, and you may be able to use this method to improve your vision when you are in your twenties, thirties, or older.
Have Stable Vision
To achieve lasting benefits, you will need to have stable vision when we begin enhancing your eyes. When you are young, you might experience frequent changes in your eyesight. As result, you will need to be older than 21 when you receive this eye procedure.
Further, you should not have experienced a significant change in the prescription for your contacts or glasses during the last six to 12 months. To ensure that you meet this requirement, you should bring in your old prescriptions or glasses to your initial appointment.
Can Certain Vision Problems Prevent Me From Using This Procedure?
In addition to having a stable vision, you will need to have healthy eyes and corneas in order to use this procedure. To ensure that you are a good candidate, we will thoroughly examine your eyes. During this meeting, you should also be prepared to tell us about any vision or eye problems that you’ve experienced in the past and any eye procedures that you’ve received.
You should also let us know if any eye issues run in your family. For example, you should tell us if your relatives have developed keratoconus or other health conditions that affected their vision or corneas. This information will help us determine whether you should use this technique to improve your eyesight.
What Vision Issues Can This Procedure Correct?
Farsightedness
If you are farsighted, you will be able to clearly see objects and people who are far away from you. When you are spending time outdoors, you might be able to enjoy the scenery without glasses. However, you will have a difficult time seeing objects that are near to you. In particular, you might struggle to read books, use your computer, and complete tasks on your smartphone.
Scientists call this condition hyperopia. This vision issue develops when your cornea is excessively flat or your eyeball is too small. These developments will cause nearby items to look blurry.
Nearsightedness
If you have this vision issue, you will be able to clearly see objects and read texts that are close to you. In particular, you may be able to use your smartphone and read a book without wearing glasses or using contacts. However, objects and people who are far away will look blurry to you. For example, you might be unable to see street signs when you are driving or clearly observe the expressions of people who are standing too far away from you.
This vision issue is also called myopia, and it develops when your cornea is sharply curved or your eyeball is too long.
Astigmatism
If you have astigmatism, your vision will be blurry. This problem develops when your cornea or lens is curved in an uneven manner.
Will My Eyes Feel Uncomfortable During This Procedure?
Before we begin improving your vision, we will put topical drops into your eyes. These drops will numb your eyes and prevent you from feeling discomfort during your appointment. As we enhance your eyes, you may notice a mild sensation of pressure.
Can I Drive After My Procedure Is Complete?
Although your appointment will be very relaxing, you will not be able to drive after we complete your eye procedure. To protect your safety, you should recruit a close friend or relative to bring you to your appointment. After we have finished improving your eyes, this friend can take you back to your house or apartment.
How Long Will My Eyes Take To Recover?
Since your eyes will quickly adjust to this procedure, you won’t be required to spend many days away from your schoolwork, job, or other normal activities. In general, you should be prepared to have around 24 to 48 hours of downtime after you use this technique to improve your eyesight.
After this period is complete, you should usually be able to read books, use your computer, and perform many other daily tasks. In fact, you may be able to drive to your follow-up meeting without using contacts or glasses to correct your vision.
Will This Procedure Permanently Improve My Vision?
This procedure is designed to create permanent improvements in your eyesight, and you should be able to enjoy the benefits of your improved vision for many years. That said, this technique cannot prevent you from experiencing glaucoma, cataracts, and other eye problems as you continue to get older.
To protect your eyes, you should attend regular check-ups with a healthcare professional during the years after you receive this procedure. During these visits, your healthcare provider will examine your eyes and talk about any vision issues that you are experiencing. Since it’s common to develop cataracts during the later portion of your life, you might need to address this condition by receiving a procedure when you are in your seventies or eighties.
Will My Health Insurance Cover The Cost of This Eye Procedure?
Your health insurance probably will not cover the cost of using this method to improve your vision. However, we offer financing options that can help you spread the cost of your procedure over a long period of time. We can give you more details about our payment options after we have examined your eyes and discussed the details of your procedure.
Will I Need To Improve Both of My Eyes?
Under some circumstances, we may use this powerful technique to improve the vision in one of your eyes. For example, you may have vision issues that affect only one eye. In particular, one of your eyes may have normal vision, while your other eye cannot see faraway objects.
The best way to determine whether you will need to improve both of your eyes is to schedule a consultation with us. After we have examined your eyes and reviewed your glasses and contact prescription, we will tell you if you should use LASIK to improve one or both of your eyes.
Can I Use Other Techniques To Enhance My Vision?
We can use a number of other methods to achieve lasting changes in your eyesight.
NearVision CK
If you are over 45 and have good distance vision but need to wear glasses when you are using a computer, making calls on your smartphone, and reading books, you might be a good candidate for a vision procedure called NearVision CK. After your appointment is complete, your vision may improve for about three to seven years. To achieve longer changes in your eyesight, you can receive follow-up procedures.
In general, you will be able to receive four to five additional procedures during your lifetime. Since we will use topical anesthetic drops to numb your eyes, you will be able to relax during each of your appointments. In general, it will only take us ten minutes to improve the vision in both eyes. After this process is complete, it will usually take up to two days for your eyes to recover.
Photorefractive Keratectomy
If you have mild to moderate farsightedness, astigmatism, or nearsightedness, you should think about getting a photorefractive keratectomy. This procedure is also called PRK. During your appointment, we will use laser energy to improve the shape of your corneas. This technique will enhance the focus of the light that moves through your retinas.
You will usually see the final impact of this corrective procedure within one to three months. After you have recovered, you may be able to stop using glasses or contacts to correct your vision. Since we will use a unique technique to enhance your eyesight, you might be a good candidate if you do not qualify for other corrective laser procedures. For example, you might be able to use this technique if you have thin corneal tissues.
Visian ICL
If you have significant farsightedness or nearsightedness, you might be able to fix these vision problems by receiving a Visian ICL procedure. Instead of changing the shape of your eyes, we will use a special lens to improve your vision. Since we will usually fix one eye during each session, you will need to attend multiple appointments.
Your eyes will quickly recover, and you may experience dramatic changes in your vision after one day has passed. To help you remain comfortable during this procedure, we will give you local or topical anesthesia. Under some circumstances, we may also instruct you to take a mild sedative. After we have finished improving your eyes, you may need to use oral medication or eye drops for a while. You’ll also need to attend a follow-up appointment.
Which Procedure Should I Use To Correct My Vision?
If you aren’t sure which procedure you should receive, you shouldn’t feel worried or upset. Before we use any of these techniques to enhance your eyesight, we will carefully examine your eyes and talk about the vision problems that you are experiencing. Once we have assessed your eyes, we will recommend a specific corrective procedure for you.
For example, if you have mild vision issues, we may advise you to get a photorefractive keratectomy. If you have more significant vision problems, we may recommend using Visian ICL to address these issues.
Improve Your Vision
You shouldn’t spend years wearing glasses that change the way that you look and decrease your self-esteem. Similarly, you don’t have to wear uncomfortable, expensive contacts. Receiving LASIK can be an excellent way to fix your astigmatism, nearsightedness, and other vision issues. To learn more about the process of using this technique to improve your eyesight, contact us at the Kagan Institute in Los Angeles and Encino, California.
