Astigmatism is one of the most common causes of blurry and often gets worse as people grow older and their eye muscles grow weaker. The condition is caused by an eye that’s not quite shaped correctly, which affects its natural focal point and causes blurring instead of providing sharp vision. Some people are born with astigmatism while others develop it over time due to eye injuries, aging, and other common causes.
Astigmatism afflicts tens of millions of Americans who, in the past, would have been resigned to a life of wearing eyeglasses or special contact lenses to correct their vision. About a third of all people in the United States have astigmatism, but effective alternatives can treat it instead of buying new eyeglasses and contacts as needed over the years. LASIK eye surgery is one of those effective alternatives.
Blurry vision in one or both eyes is the most common symptom of astigmatism. You might be nearsighted or farsighted, but both are common symptoms of astigmatism. The cause is either an eye lens or a cornea in the affected eye that isn’t shaped properly. The improper shape affects the eye’s focal point, which causes blurry vision due to astigmatism.
How to Know if LASIK Could Restore Your Vision
You might wonder: Can LASIK treat astigmatism? It certainly can and often does, but not for everyone. The procedure uses very rapid laser pulses to reshape an affected eye’s corneal tissue to restore the focal point to its proper location. Once the focal point is restored, your vision is corrected.
You’ll need to see a qualified eye doctor to learn if you are a viable candidate for LASIK. Ultimately, it comes down to how much corneal tissue each affected eye has. An eye doctor can measure how much you have and tell if it’s possible to reshape the cornea to treat the astigmatism and restore your vision.
Are There Any Side Effects?
There are a lot of scary words that go into LASIK, including “laser” and “eye surgery.” Fortunately, the procedure is far from scary and comes with very few potential side effects. A computerized LASIK machine that your doctor programs to correct each eye. It takes only a couple of minutes per eye and causes no pain.
It’s common to experience some eye irritation after undergoing LASIK surgery, but it’s generally painless and is treated with prescription eye drops for about a week or so. The irritation goes away after a few days, but you will likely experience some night vision for a couple of weeks. Night vision is most common when driving at night when traffic lights and streetlights produce a flare, but it goes away as your eyes fully heal from the procedure.
LASIK surgery is much less irritating than wearing contact lenses for the first time. There’s almost no comparison between the amount of irritation contact lenses cause and getting corrective LASIK surgery. You can get the answer to, “Can LASIK treat astigmatism” by seeing a qualified eye doctor.
