What Does LASIK Correct?

LASIK Eye Surgery Treating Eye Problems

LASIK eye surgery is one of the most common surgical procedures, but many wonders, “What does LASIK correct?”  To answer this question, you need to have an understanding of the eye, and how LASIK works. Tylock-George Eye Care and Laser Center, Dallas LASIK specialists led by Dr. Gary Tylock, have the answers you need to understand LASIK.

The human eye works something like a camera. Light enters the eye through the cornea, and as it does, it is bent or refracted. This bent light travels through the pupil and into the lens, which fine-tunes the focus of light into the retina. The retina turns the light into electrical impulses, which travel along the optic nerve to the brain where the image is interpreted. The curvature of your cornea, the power of your lens, and the length of your eye can all influence the way your eye bends lights. Problems with the way that your eye focuses light are called refractive errors, and they can manifest in different conditions.

• Myopia, or nearsightedness, means that you are able to see well close up, but have inadequate distance vision. This condition occurs when the corneas refract too much light.
• Hyperopia, or farsightedness, is the inability to see very well close up. Though many people who are hyperopic can see clearly at a distance, some cannot. This condition is caused by corneas that do not refract enough light.
• Astigmatism is an irregularly shaped cornea or natural lens. This prevents the image on the retina from coming into focus.

What does LASIK correct? It can correct any of the above conditions, provided the condition is within certain parameters. With LASIK, the surgeon creates a corneal flap and then uses lasers to correct the problem in the eye. One condition it cannot correct is presbyopia because is caused by the natural aging process, which affects the lens and the eye muscles. Because LASIK does not deal with the musculature of the eyes or the lenses, it is not a solution for presbyopia.

If you want to know more about LASIK, you could not find a more knowledgeable source than Dallas LASIK surgeon, Dr. Gary Tylock. One of the most experienced refractive surgeons in the United States; Dr. Tylock is the head of the Tylock-George Eye Care and Laser Center. Contact Tylock for more information on refractive surgery, or connect with the online community on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.