What to Expect from Your LASIK Preoperative Visit

In order to be approved for LASIK surgery, your eye doctor will need to conduct a very thorough examination at your preoperative visit. The purpose of this examination is two-fold: first, your doctor must make sure you are a strong candidate for surgery. Second, if he determines you are in fact a good candidate, he will need to take certain measurements of your eye to help determine which LASIK procedure is right for you.

In order to be considered an ideal candidate for LASIK, you must meet certain criteria. Most importantly, your vision must lie within the acceptable correction range, and your prescription must have remained fairly stable over the past two years.

Your cornea also must have a total thickness exceeding 500 microns. This is important because the LASIK procedure removes part of your cornea in the reshaping process. It is essential that your cornea is thick enough to ensure that you have a sufficient layer remaining after the surgery.

Your pupil diameter should also not exceed 6.5 mm. This is important because pupils larger than this can lead to post-op complications, such as halos and glare during night vision.

If your eye surgeon determines that you meet the above criteria, he will then conduct a thorough examination of your eyes to determine the correct course of action for your surgery. As LASIK technology advances, there are a growing number of surgical options that cater to the specific needs of your individual eye issues.

Your doctor will use a machine called a phoropter to check your prescription. If you have ever gone to the eye doctor to take an eye exam, you are familiar with this device. You rest your eyes on this machine and focus on an eye chart across the room while your doctor uses different combinations of lenses to determine your prescription.

Your doctor will also examine the surface of your cornea using a dye called Fluoracaine. This dye will cause your cornea to glow under blue light, enabling your doctor to look for irregularities in your cornea. Detecting any irregularities in your cornea is crucial to the surgical process, since LASIK uses a laser to shave off a portion of your cornea.

If you are interested in considering LASIK surgery to correct your vision problems, you can use the links at the bottom of this page to find a qualified ophthalmologist in your area.