Am I a Good Candidate for Lasik?
Lasik procedure for vision correction is one of the newest technologies to hit the market today, and many people would want to know the risks, the benefits, and how it works. Before these, however, it is important to know the requirements that a person must fulfill to have Lasik procedure done successfully. It is also necessary to consult with a qualified Lasik physician as per individual case. This article lists some of the qualifications you must have in order to be a good candidate for this procedure. Chances are your physician will look for these first too.
The first requirement is the maturity of the eye. As long as you are under 18, you are not qualified to undergo the procedure because it is likely for the shape of the eye to undergo several changes over the years. If the Lasik procedure is done and the shape of the eye continues to change, how clear your vision is will be affected. In some cases, Lasik physicians might recommend waiting until after the age of 25.
Similarly, the physician will also take into consideration the vision prescription for the patient. Vision prescription should not change over the course of one year or longer. This requirement is again due to the possibility of changes in the shape of the eyes over the years. The procedure is only effective if the eye shape does not change even after the surgery.
The good news is that a person of any age after the required age cutoff can avail of the procedure. There is no ceiling value for age. Many patients with ages fifty up to eighty have been known to have the Lasik procedure and report it as a success. For advanced ages, the requirement the physician would look for is if the eye has enough tear production to facilitate healing and lubrication once the procedure is done.
The Lasik candidate's eyes should have a clean bill of health. This means that the patient should not have been a victim of infection or injury for the past year. Also, the corneas of the patient's eyes should not have any scarring. Finally, they should not have recurring eye problems. If the patient had a history of herpes infection that affected the eyes, the patient can be disqualified.
The physician would also require a complete medical history of the Lasik patient before undergoing the procedure. Chronic conditions like auto-immune disorders such as Lupus will also disqualify a patient from receiving Lasik procedure as treatment. When your physician asks for the illnesses you have experienced or is experiencing, be as comprehensive as possible in enumerating them. Pregnant women should also wait until after birth in order to qualify for Lasik procedure.
These are the crucial factors in determining if the patient is a good candidate for the procedure or if he or she should just look for other eye improvement procedures. Generally, healthy people who had standard vision problems found the Lasik procedure to be beneficial, as long as it was done by a professional Lasik physician.