How Corneal Issues Can Affect Your LASIK Candidacy

    CHICAGO, IL, September 08, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Your cornea is a remarkable structure in that it is the transparent outer layer of your eye and in a healthy state has no blood vessels. It is one of your body's most delicate and sensitive areas, but heals rapidly. The cornea's curvature focuses light as it enters your eye. Further into the eye, your lens further focuses light to produce a clear image on your retina.

Although the lens can successfully change its curvature to focus on objects at different distances, your cornea cannot change its curvature. LASIK eye surgery works by altering the cornea's curvature, making it steeper or flatter according to your specific refractive error (myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism) to allow for perfect focus of light.

Problems With the Cornea

Because the cornea is so delicate and vital to the outcome of LASIK, problems with the cornea can prevent you from being a good candidate for the procedure. At Doctors For Visual Freedom, Dr. Golden carefully evaluates your cornea and your entire visual system to determine your candidacy for LASIK. Alternatives to LASIK are being developed to widen the pool of candidates for Refractive Surgery.

Some of these issues may include:

- Overly thin cornea - Depending on how much correction your eyes require, and the thickness of your cornea, Dr. Mark Golden may rule you out as a qualified LASIK candidate. PRK may be an excellent method to safely treat those with thinner corneas.
- Overly steep cornea - Excessively steep corneas may be a sign of corneal disease. In some circumstances a normal but steep cornea may be more safely approached with PRK instead of LASIK.
- Disease - Scarred corneas can block or distort the light entering your eye, interfering with your vision. It may be possible to reduce or eliminate scars using Laser Vision Correction. The use of Custom WaveFront laser treatment may improve the best corrected acuity in those with abnormal corneas.

Only during a comprehensive evaluation is it possible to determine if you are a perfect candidate for LASIK Laser Vision Correction. You should have enough corneal thickness to allow for the LASIK flap and tissue removal, while still leaving enough of the cornea in place to maintain integrity of the eye's shape. Pachymetry is used at the time of an evaluation to measure your corneal thickness and with an understanding of the amount of your prescription to be corrected, a logical decision can be made to determine if you are an ideal LASIK candidate.

If you would like more information about corneal issues and LASIK, please visit the website of experienced Chicago LASIK eye surgeon Dr. Mark Golden at Doctors For Visual Freedom at www.doctorsforvisualfreedom.com.

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