Giants' Baseman Pablo Sandoval Receives LASIK for Astigmatism

Earlier this month, San Francisco Giants' third baseman Pablo Sandoval underwent LASIK eye surgery. Sandoval received LASIK only in his left eye. He had been experiencing vision problems in that eye since 2010. Allegedly, Sandoval has a slight degree of astigmatism in his left eye.

Sandoval has tried contact lenses and prescription goggles to correct his vision. LASIK will allow him to continue playing baseball without the hassle of glasses or contacts. Many professional athletes – baseball players and others – have received LASIK and been quite satisfied with the result.

Some people have conjectured that Sandoval's vision problem is to blame for his trouble hitting right-hand. Astigmatism causes vision to be blurry at all distances. This blurriness is caused by the irregular shape of the cornea. The cornea should be a sphere, like a baseball. An astigmatic cornea is shaped like a football. LASIK surgery uses laser energy to reshape the curvature of the cornea.

Depending on the degree and severity of astigmatism, LASIK may be a suitable treatment. Some cases of astigmatism cannot be corrected with LASIK, and an alternative treatment may be more appropriate.

If you have astigmatism or another vision disorder and would like to know if LASIK is right for you, please contact an experienced LASIK surgeon in your area.

When Shouldn’t You Get LASIK?

For all intents and purposes, LASIK is very safe and effective for nearly every qualified patient. With the advent of so many new state-of-the-art technologies, there's a customized LASIK just for you. This has made millions of people very happy. These are people who see (pardon the pun) that the benefit of LASIK far outweighs the risks.

Beyond the risks of what those who undergo the LASIK procedure may endure, albeit a tiny fraction of LASIK patients, there are people who simply are not candidates for LASIK. These are people whose risks outweigh any benefit.

Contraindications of LASIK

You should not have LASIK if you:

• Have an autoimmune (AIDS) immunodeficiency disease (Crohns or lupus) or collagen vascular diseases (rheumatoid arthritis). You will not heal as well as you should after LASIK
  
• Are pregnant or nursing. Being pregnant or nursing can cause temporary changes in your cornea. LASIK may change the shape of your cornea improperly
  
• Taking medications that have ocular side effects, such as those for normalizing heart rhythms. This medication can affect LASIK accuracy or the healing of your cornea, which will result in poor vision post-LASIK
  
• Have any condition that causes thinning of the cornea, such as keratoconus. Thinning of the cornea is a serious condition and can cause corneal problems both before and after LASIK. Additional surgery may be required
  
• Have thin corneas in general. Corneas that are too thin cannot have a proper flap cut. A proper flap is essential to the LASIK procedure
  

If you have any questions about being a LASIK candidate, please find an experienced LASIK doctor in your area today.

Why is Refractive Stability Neccessary before LASIK?

Continually adapted and developed over the years, LASIK has provided many people with a safe and effective way to improve vision. LASIK is safest and most effective for people who are good candidates for the procedure. An important aspect of candidacy is refractive stability.

Refractive stability means your glasses or contact lens prescription has not changed for at least a year. Some LASIK surgeons require their patients to have stable vision for two years prior to the procedure.

Your vision is more likely to be unstable if you are:

• Younger than 20
• Taking certain medications
• Experiencing hormone fluctuations
• Pregnant or breastfeeding

The LASIK procedure makes permanent changes to your cornea. As such, additional procedures are required to correct for any prescription changes. You are much more likely to achieve the best LASIK results if you have had stable vision for a year or two.

Some of the parameters listed above do not necessarily disqualify you from a LASIK procedure. The only way to know if LASIK is right for you is to consult an experienced eye surgeon.

To find out if you are a candidate for LASIK, please contact an experienced LASIK surgeon in your area.

LASIK for Athletes

LASIK is a great vision solution for many athletes with nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.

Many athletes have received LASIK and experienced outstanding results. Professional athletes who have received LASIK include:

• Tiger Woods
• LeBron James
• Greg Maddux

A common concern for athletes interested in LASIK is corneal flap displacement. Contact sports like football carry the risk of a blow to the eye, which could cause the corneal flap created in the procedure to become dislodged or displaced. You should discuss this risk and others with your eye surgeon as part of deciding if LASIK is compatible with your lifestyle.

Unlike glasses, LASIK lets you clearly see all areas of your vision. Glasses can block your peripheral eyesight, the area outside of your direct line of sight. Seeing movement and objects to the side of you is especially important in sports, and LASIK has the potential to achieve this unobstructed sight.

Many athletes use contact lenses. Aside from the hassle of inserting, removing and cleaning these devices every day, contacts carry the risk of eye infection. As you get active and start sweating, the sweat can make its way into your eyes and contacts, making you vulnerable to infection. As an athlete, you probably want to focus on the game instead of how much you're perspiring.

The only way to decide if LASIK is a good fit for your active lifestyle is to consult an experienced surgeon. Be sure to raise all of your concerns and gather all the information you need to make a decision about your vision.

If you are an athlete or otherwise active person and would like to live free from contacts and glasses, please find an experienced LASIK surgeon in your area.