What Precautions You Should Take Before LASIK Surgery? LASIK surgery is a great way to reduce your dependency on corrective eyewear such as contact lenses and glasses. Any type of surgery, no matter if it is major or minor, can be quite a nervous experience. However, it doesn’t need to cause you unnecessary stress. If you do prior research and are prepared ahead of time, you can put your mind at ease in the days leading up to your laser eye surgery. Here are some precautions you should observe before your LASIK surgery:
1. Eligibility Before your surgery, you should have a full evaluation conducted by your eye surgeon to determine whether you’re suitable for laser eye surgery. This will include several tests such as corneal thickness and mapping, vision and prescription testing, eye pressure and pupil dilation. Even though these tests might sound intimidating, they’re easy and painless.
2. Medical History You should ensure that your doctor is aware of eye-related health issues, as well as more general health concerns or problems, both past and present. You should also let your doctor know what medications you take on a regular basis, as well as any medications you are allergic to.
3. Make-up To prevent possible infections, your eyes and face will need to be as clean as possible. You should avoid wearing makeup at least one to two days prior to your surgery and on the day of surgery. This includes creams, perfumes, or lotions. You should also gently but thoroughly wash your eyes in the days leading up to laser eye surgery to ensure there is no makeup left lingering.
4. Contact Lenses If you wear soft contact lenses, it is essential that you take them out at least one week prior to having laser eye surgery. Hard lenses should be removed three to four weeks prior to surgery. This is essential as wearing contact lenses can alter the shape of your corneas. Wearing contact lenses too close to your laser eye surgery can result in inaccurate measurements, causing your results to be less effective.