Like all surgeries, Lasik
isn’t for everyone, so how do you know if you’re a candidate?

Lasik can be very
successful when performed on the right patient, so who is the right person?

* The ideal Lasik
candidate is over 22 years old and is not pregnant or nursing, nor
thinking of becoming pregnant in the next few years. (Lasik is  FDA approved
for people over 18, but I have seen too many large Rx changes in the 18 – 21
age group).

* They also should be in
good overall health, meaning free of autoimmune disease, (or any other alphabet
soup disease, RA, MS, MG, AIDS, Lupus,   

   CVD
etc…). People taking long term steroids or are diabetic are not the best
candidates.

* Their eyeglass Rx
should be stable for at least the past year.

* They should be free
from eye diseases such as glaucoma, cataracts, keratoconus, retinal diseases or
dry eye.

*And in my experience,
the best candidates are nearsighted. Meaning they are blurriest far away.

* Patients over 40 years
old, have special issues that need to be addressed on a face to face
basis.

On a personal note, I
had Lasik done in 2001 and am still 20/20 and very happy. But I am a firm
believer that ALL questions need to be addressed BEFORE surgery, and
should be done on a one-on -one basis with an experienced licensed optometrist.