How Many Years Does LASIK Last?

LASIK eye surgery takes only about 30 minutes per eye, but how many years does LASIK last? At Eye Consultants of Pennsylvania, we can answer this question and other important questions you may have about this revolutionary vision correction procedure.

LASIK stands for laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK), and it is a surgical procedure that permanently reshapes the eye tissue of the cornea. LASIK is robust enough to last your entire lifetime. Many patients no longer have a need for glasses or contacts after the surgery.

Vision Changes After LASIK

As people age, vision changes as part of that natural aging process. These changes are unrelated to LASIK, so vision may again become blurry as you get older. This does not mean that your LASIK procedure was defective in any way or that the surgeon did not do a thorough job.

How old you are when you first have LASIK is a big factor that our expert team will consider when advising you on your vision care. Another factor that can impact LASIK is whether you have any other progressive eye conditions.

How LASIK Works

LASIK surgeons use lasers to reshape your cornea so that light once again bends correctly to properly focus on your retina, thus restoring vision. With normal 20/20 vision, light bends to properly focus on the retina, a process called refraction. When light doesn’t bend properly, light isn’t properly focused on the retina. This is called refractive error and that changes your vision.

LASIK corrects nearsightedness (myopia), meaning blurry distance vision, and also corrects farsightedness (hyperopia), or blurry up-close vision. LASIK is so advanced that it can even correct astigmatism, an imperfection in the corneal shape that causes issues with both near and far vision.

The laser corrects the steepness of the cornea, and that changes the manner in which light is focused in the eye. When you are nearsighted, your cornea is too steep, making it difficult to see things far away. Therefore, the surgeons will flatten the center of the cornea for improved distance vision.

In farsighted patients, the cornea is too flat, so it is difficult to see things up close. LASIK can make the cornea steeper for improved close-up vision. The cornea has an irregular curve in patients with astigmatism, making the vision out of focus. LASIK smoothes out the cornea to make it more symmetrical for clearer vision.

Over-40 Eyes

Any of these three conditions can change after surgery as your natural aging progression continues to change your vision. Not everyone will experience age-related vision changes. However, people over age 40 often experience presbyopia, a natural eye change involving the eye lens becoming less flexible. As the lens loses flexibility, you may be less able to focus on nearby objects.

Most patients experience great LASIK results for at least 10 years. According to one study published in an ophthalmology journal, about 35 percent of LASIK patients needed another surgery after 10 years.

If you’ve been wondering how many years does LASIK last, we’ve provided the answer. Come see us at Eye Consultants of Pennsylvania to determine whether you are a good candidate. Call us to schedule an initial evaluation with one of our cornea specialists. We want you to be our next LASIK patient.