changing vision and lasik...

Hello!

I am a 41 year old myop (-5.00) and recently starting to have problems
mainly with my contact lenses. Or could it be my vision is changing?
NOT already? I know people into their late 40's still doing fine!

I moved from high humidity (Atlanta) to very low (Arizona) about 3
years ago and since have had trouble with my soft lenses. My eyes get
tired easily, they burn sometimes, they are sometimes blurry,
espeically in left eye. Drops only help VERY temporarily.
I've had checkups annually and am currently wearing accuvue for
-5.00 each eye. Not much change past few years. I also have a fair
degree of astigmatism, probably not very corrected at present.
Hard/semi contacts are out for me.
Although I was never able to read a good book comfortably with soft
lenses, it's gotten worse now. Too blurry...gives me a headache.
I am considering lasik...especially customvue, but am concerned about
being "super" corrected to the point of now needing reading glasses.
The type of work I do requires both close/far focus. I also, already,
have night vision problems and headlights bother me greatly.
Since contacts are getting too uncomfortable, I don't know what to do
other than Lasik. Any ideas?
Thanks,
Kate

 

Pure groping in the dark, as usual.
No answer to the same old questions.

 

Sounds like dry eye to me. The newer silicone-hydrogel lenses are
better for dry eye. In fact, silicone-hydrogel lenses are better,
period. IMHO, if you can get a si-hydrogel lens, you should. Examples
include (from lower to higher silicone content): Acuvue Advance,
Purevision, O2Optix, Focus Night and Day. Then, there is the Proclear
Compatible, which is a non-silicone lens, but often works for dry eye
on patients for whom silicone-hydrogels do not work.

The catch-22 with LASIK is that if you have a dry eye problem, LASIK
can make it worse. You need to have a complete tear function
assessment before thinking about LASIK. At a minimum that would
include a TBUT (tear breakup time), and a Schirmer w/ and w/o
anesthesia.

DrG

 

Why an eye becomes dry?

 

You'd ask the LASIK doctor to target -1.00 instead of 0.00, or use reading

Mike is talking about monovision. Visit
http://www.usaeyes.org/faq/subjects/monovision.htm for more details.


Glenn Hagele
Executive Director
Council for Refractive Surgery Quality Assurance

Email to glenn dot hagele at usaeyes dot org

http://www.USAEyes.org
http://www.ComplicatedEyes.org

I am not a doctor.

 

For more details regarding LASIK and dry eye, visit
http://www.complicatedeyes.org/dry_eye_treatment.htm


Glenn Hagele
Executive Director
Council for Refractive Surgery Quality Assurance

Email to glenn dot hagele at usaeyes dot org

http://www.USAEyes.org
http://www.ComplicatedEyes.org

I am not a doctor.

 

simple answers please, this was a very simple question.