{"id":9932,"date":"2021-02-15T14:33:09","date_gmt":"2021-02-15T14:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/?page_id=9932"},"modified":"2022-01-20T09:29:34","modified_gmt":"2022-01-20T09:29:34","slug":"lasik-eye-surgery-5-myths-and-facts","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/guide-to-laser-refractive-surgery\/lasik-eye-surgery-5-myths-and-facts\/","title":{"rendered":"LASIK Eye Surgery: 5 Myths and Facts"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Here&#8217;s the most common myths and facts on laser eye surgery.<\/h2>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/optical\/laser-refractive-surgery\/\">LASIK eye surgery<\/a> has become the most popular refractive surgery in the U.S, there are many misconceptions regarding this procedure that prevent people from even discussing LASIK with their eye doctors.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Myth #1: LASIK surgery is painful.<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><i>Fact: LASIK is a quick and painless procedure.\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p>Prior to the procedure, your LASIK surgeon will apply numbing drops to ensure that you don\u2019t feel any pain. You may feel slight pressure when the corneal flap is made, but you shouldn\u2019t feel any pain.<\/p>\n<p>LASIK is performed as an outpatient procedure and you will be able to return home after about two hours. In most cases, you will be able to return to your regular activities within a couple of days after your procedure.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Myth #2: LASIK surgery only corrects myopia (nearsightedness).<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><i>Fact: LASIK surgery can correct all types of refractive errors.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p>While in the past, LASIK was first used as a treatment for myopia, it is now used to also correct hyperopia (farsightedness) and astigmatism.<\/p>\n<p><strong>SEE RELATED:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/guide-to-laser-refractive-surgery\/guide-to-implantable-contact-lenses\/\">Guide to Implantable Contact Lenses<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\">Find an Eye Doctor <\/a>directory can provide a list of eye doctors near you that can discuss the benefits of LASIK surgery and answer any questions you may have about this vision correcting procedure.<\/p>\n\n\t<div class=\"practice-search-widget\">\n\t\t<h3>Find an eye doctor near you<\/h3>\n\t\t\n\t<form class=\"practice-search-form practice-search-form-widget\" action=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/results\/\" method=\"get\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"page\" class=\"practice-search-page\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_latitude\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_longitude\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"address\" class=\"practice-search-address\" placeholder=\"City, Surburb or Address\" value=\"\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\n\t\t\n\n\t\t<button type=\"submit\" class=\"practice-search-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M10.6796 0.130005C9.15708 0.130059 7.66615 0.5646 6.38198 1.38258C5.09781 2.20057 4.07373 3.36803 3.43004 4.74783C2.78634 6.12763 2.54976 7.66246 2.74808 9.17205C2.9464 10.6816 3.57139 12.1033 4.54964 13.27L0.729639 17.08C0.6364 17.1732 0.562439 17.2839 0.511979 17.4058C0.461519 17.5276 0.435547 17.6581 0.435547 17.79C0.435547 17.9219 0.461519 18.0524 0.511979 18.1743C0.562439 18.2961 0.6364 18.4068 0.729639 18.5C0.917942 18.6883 1.17334 18.7941 1.43964 18.7941C1.5715 18.7941 1.70207 18.7681 1.82389 18.7177C1.94571 18.6672 2.0564 18.5932 2.14964 18.5L5.99964 14.62C7.35406 15.6038 8.98566 16.1324 10.6596 16.13C12.7814 16.13 14.8162 15.2871 16.3165 13.7869C17.8168 12.2866 18.6596 10.2517 18.6596 8.13C18.6596 6.00827 17.8168 3.97344 16.3165 2.47315C14.8162 0.97286 12.7814 0.130005 10.6596 0.130005H10.6796ZM10.6796 14.13C9.49295 14.13 8.33291 13.7781 7.34622 13.1188C6.35952 12.4595 5.59049 11.5225 5.13636 10.4261C4.68224 9.32975 4.56342 8.12335 4.79493 6.95946C5.02644 5.79558 5.59788 4.72648 6.437 3.88736C7.27611 3.04825 8.34521 2.4768 9.5091 2.24529C10.673 2.01378 11.8794 2.1326 12.9757 2.58673C14.0721 3.04085 15.0092 3.80989 15.6685 4.79658C16.3277 5.78328 16.6796 6.94332 16.6796 8.13C16.6796 9.7213 16.0475 11.2474 14.9223 12.3726C13.7971 13.4979 12.2709 14.13 10.6796 14.13Z\" fill=\"#fff\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t<button type=\"button\" class=\"practice-search-use-my-location\">\n\t\t\tSearch near me\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\n\t<\/form>\n\n\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<h2><b>Myth #3: A complication of LASIK surgery is permanent vision loss.\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><i>Fact: Blindness is not a complication of LASIK surgery.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p>LASIK surgery involves the reshaping of the cornea, the front surface of the eye. As with any other surgical procedure, there are possible complications and risks that accompany LASIK surgery, such as dry eye or blurry vision for a couple of days.<\/p>\n<p>However, complications from this procedure are actually quite uncommon and can generally be corrected if needed.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, your eye doctor will provide detailed instructions regarding any post-surgical medications that may be required to prevent an infection, as well as how to care for your eyes while they heal.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Myth #4: LASIK surgery is not affordable.<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><i>Fact: LASIK is generally affordable.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p>As a result of advanced technology and an increase in the number of people undergoing LASIK surgery, the cost of the procedure has significantly decreased over the years<b>.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t let the cost of the procedure prevent you from discussing it with your eye doctor. There are many vision insurance plans as well as financing options that can help you to cover the cost of the procedure, without breaking the bank.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Myth #5: You have to be a certain age to benefit from LASIK surgery.<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b><i>Fact: There is no ideal age to undergo LASIK surgery<\/i><\/b><b>.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Though, most eye doctors will recommend waiting until age 18\u2014 when the eyes have stopped growing.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Your eye doctor may explain to you that as you age, your risk for developing serious eye conditions, including age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts, increases. These eye conditions can prevent you from being a candidate for LASIK surgery.<\/p>\n<p><b>LASIK surgery is a safe procedure that has helped millions of people correct their vision, without the need for eyewear.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><strong>LEARN MORE:\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1627552249083000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGFiNChCYiEN8g9bUTMEiO89_DEKA\">Optical and Contact Lenses<\/a><\/p>\n<p>If you are interested in learning more about LASIK surgery, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\">schedule an appointment<\/a> with an eye doctor.<\/p>\n<p><i>Understanding the facts about LASIK surgery as well as its benefits can help you to make an informed decision that can change the way you \u201cview\u201d life.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here&#8217;s the most common myths and facts on laser eye surgery. While LASIK eye surgery has become the most popular refractive surgery in the U.S, there are many misconceptions regarding this procedure that prevent people from even discussing LASIK with their eye doctors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9933,"parent":12558,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-article.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[225,229,228,168,427,232,90,396,124],"class_list":["post-9932","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-astigmatism","tag-contact-lenses","tag-cornea","tag-eye-doctor","tag-laser-eye-surgery","tag-longsighted","tag-myopia","tag-myopia-management","tag-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>LASIK Eye Surgery: 5 Myths and Facts - Optometrists.org<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/guide-to-laser-refractive-surgery\/lasik-eye-surgery-5-myths-and-facts\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"LASIK Eye Surgery: 5 Myths and Facts - Optometrists.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Here&#039;s the most common myths and facts on laser eye surgery. 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