Can Lasik Treat Myopia?

January 8, 2025

Myopia or nearsightedness is a refractive error that causes objects that are far away to appear blurry. This not only causes inconvenience in everyday work but can also turn out to be dangerous for activities like night driving. Yes, eyeglasses and contact lenses may help in the short term but they are not a permanent solution. Fogging up of eyeglasses, dryness due to extended use of contact lenses, lost or broken specs can be a big headache in day-to-day functioning.

If you are looking for a sustainable and permanent solution for getting rid of myopia, consider undergoing vision correction surgeries such as Lasik which uses a laser to reshape the cornea. In this blog we shall discuss how effective Lasik eye surgery is for correcting myopia. But before that lets understand what does myopia mean along with its causes, symptoms, and the complications associated with it.

What Is Myopia?

Myopia is the medical term for nearsightedness. It is an eye condition that affects one’s distant vision i.e, the ability to clearly see things that are far away. Myopia is quite common and develops generally during childhood or teenage. Children who spend a lot of time in “near activities” such as reading or using smartphones & laptops have a higher risk of developing myopia. 

These are the symptoms people with myopia are likely to have:

  • Objects that are far away look blurred
  • Objects that are close look clear
  • Frequent headaches
  • Stain in eyes
  • Having to squint the eyes to look clearly
  • Tiredness during driving, and viewing objects that are far away
  • Shortened attention span
  • Holding objects close to face to view them clearly

What Causes Myopia

While it is hard to pinpoint the exact reason for myopia, experts believe that it is caused due to a mix of hereditary as well as environmental factors. Here are a few reasons why myopia happens:

  • Family history wherein either one or both parents are myopic
  • Spending long hours in jobs that require focusing on close objects - reading, working on screens
  • Spending too much time indoors & little-to-no time outdoors / in broad, natural light
  • Belonging to an ethnicity where the rate of myopia is higher

Complications Of Myopia

If not treated in time or left undiagnosed, high myopia can lead to serious sight-threatening issues such as:

  • Cataracts
  • Glaucoma
  • Retinal detachment
  • MMD or Myopic macular degeneration
  • Pathologic myopia
  • Chorioretinal atrophy

How Does Lasik Treat Myopia

If you are looking for a permanent solution to get rid of your eyeglasses, Lasik eye surgery is the best option for you. 

Now you must be wondering what is lasik surgery? Laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis commonly known as LASIK is one of the most common eye surgeries for treating myopia as well as other conditions such as farsightedness and astigmatism. This procedure uses a laser to change the shape of the cornea which inturn makes the vision clearer. 

As already discussed, myopia generally happens because of long hours of activities that need close-up viewing. Since the viewing is done very closely, the light coming inside the eyes does not focus correctly. This makes seeing objects that are far away very difficult.

Lasik treatment for myopia uses a laser to reshape the cornea in a way that light gets focused on the retina. This is how distant objects start appearing clearly after the surgery. Here’s a step-by-step walkthrough : 

  • Creation of flap using a blade or a laser inside the cornea
  • Folding the flap so that the cornea can be accessed to change its shape
  • Reshaping of the cornea is done by removing some part of the corneal tissue. This process uses a laser to do so. Reshaping ensures that the light entering the eyes gets focussed correctly
  • Folding back of the flap to conclude the procedure. This process is completely stitch-free.

Lasik surgery for myopia is a safe and effective procedure where most patients achieve excellent distant vision within just a few days. Full recovery takes about 3-4 months.

Benefits Of Lasik Eye Surgery For Myopia

Is Lasik surgery safe ? This is a very common concern of people who are considering undergoing Lasik treatment to cure myopia. Not only is the procedure 100% safe but it has several benefits:

  • Short procedure : Gets completed in 30 minutes or less
  • Painless : Is Lasik surgery painful? The answer is No! The procedure involves minimal pain and patients can go back home on the same day
  • Quick recovery : Lasik eye surgery recovery time is about 2 weeks. Full recovery takes at least 3 months.
  • Improved vision : Most patients get 20/20 sharp vision within just a few days of surgery
  • Low risk : Lasik eyeglass removal surgery has been around since the early 90s. This guarantees lesser complications and a high success rate
  • Permanent specs removal : This procedure gives you crystal clear vision without having to ever wear eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Lasik Treatment For Myopia - Are You An Ideal Candidate?

Lasik for myopia offers a permanent solution for nearsightedness, allowing you to live life hassle-free. However, there are certain conditions that need to be fulfilled to be able to undergo Lasik. 

Knowing if you are an ideal candidate for Lasik eye surgery is important before going ahead with the procedure. Here are some criteria's that make one an ideal candidate for Lasik surgery: 

  • Should be 18 years of age and above
  • Shove have a stable eyeglass power for at least a year
  • Should not have severe dry eye syndrome or corneal abnormalities
  • Should not have thin corneas
  • Should have an overall good health to allow quick, natural healing 

Recovery After Lasik Surgery - Steps To Follow

Having the surgery is just the initial step towards sharp vision. A lot of measures and steps have to be taken to ensure best results and avoid complications. Once you have undergone Lasik, it is important to take a few precautions : 

  • Make sure that no dirt or dust gets into the eye for a few weeks
  • Do not use lotions, cream, or makeup around your eyes for at least 2 weeks
  • Avoid hot tubs as well as swimming for minimum two months
  • Avoid strenuous activities as well as intense sports for at least a month to protect the eyes from being hit 

Treatments For Myopia Other Than Lasik

The purpose of this blog is to offer solutions and explore the option of permanent specs removal surgery for everyone. Therefore, if you can not undergo Lasik eye surgeries due to thin corneas or any other reason, there are other surgical options that you may choose from.

- Epi - Lasik

This procedure reshapes the cornea with the help of a laser or a blade and inserts a thin flap on the topmost layer of the cornea. 

- PRK

Photorefractive Keratectomy or PRK is a flapless procedure that scrapes the outer layer of the cornea to reshape it. 

- SMILE 

Small Incision Lenticule Extraction is a completely flapless procedure for treating myopia.

- ICL

Implantable Collamer Lens fixes myopia by placing an artificial lens between the natural lens and the iris without changing the shape of the cornea.

- RLE

Refractive Lens Exchange is another surgical procedure that corrects myopia. In this, the natural eye lens is replaced with an intraocular lens. It is even ideal for people who are above the age of 50.

- LASEK

Laser Epithelial Keratomileusis is a corrective refractive surgery where instead of a flap, the top layer of the cornea is moved and then reattached.

- Contoura Vision

This vision correction surgery is completely blade and stitch free to provide the best visual quality for people having myopia.

In A Nutshell

Wanting to get rid of eyeglasses & contact lenses is generally considered as a decision influenced by fashion. However, people who are actually struggling with conditions like myopia know that it's much more than that. The hassle of not being able to drive easily, having poor night vision, struggling to view distant objects can become a big challenge and disrupt one’s daily life. With Lasik eye surgery, refractive errors like myopia are totally eliminated.

Lasik for myopia has a good track record both in terms of visual clarity as well as ease of procedure & recovery time. It’s high time you set yourself free from the burden of specs and contact lenses. 

Are you looking for a good eye hospital in North India? Good news ! North India is one of the few regions in the country blessed with exceptional eye care facilities. For instance, Lasik surgery in Punjab has a great track record and thousands of happy patients visiting from across the country to get their refractive errors corrected. 

Trust Lasik for 20/20 clear vision without glasses. Happy seeing!