Can You Get Lasik If You Have Herpes

Previous Eye Injury Or Surgery

If you had an eye injury that left a significant corneal scar, you might not qualify for LASIK.

Previous eye injury or eye surgery may increase your risk for LASIK complications, so be sure to give the eye surgeon your complete health history. If you already had laser eye surgery in the past, it might be possible to have a second enhancement procedure.

In this article

Lasik Candidates Should Have Good Eye Health:

• Your eye prescription should fall within certain prescription limits.
• You should have no eye disease, including keratoconus, uncontrolled glaucoma, severe cataracts, corneal disease and certain retinal and optic nerve diseases.
• You should have no residual or active eye conditions including optic neuritis, ocular herpes, some cases of amblyopia and strabismus .
• You should have no current or recurring infections.

You Are Within The Proper Age Range

Typically, you must be at least 18 years old to have LASIK. However, it is best to wait until you are in your mid-20s, which is when your vision stabilizes for the most part.

There is no upper age limit for receiving LASIK, although there are some important considerations. After age 40, presbyopia begins to set in. This process affects your ability to focus up close and continues until about age 60.

LASIK does not correct your near vision unless you opt for monovision LASIK. Otherwise, most patients who receive LASIK need reading glasses once they are over 40.

Older age also increases your risk for dry eyes and other eye conditions that may affect your eligibility for LASIK.

NVISION Eye Centers offer custom LASIK, affordable pricing plans, and a lifetime guarantee. Learn More

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First: Why You Should Consider A Vision Correction Procedure

Convenience plays a role in why so many people choose to get a vision correction procedure in the first place. Your LASIK life is all about simplicity, so if youre someone who is tired of messing around with contact lenses every day then your willingness to let go of the hassles of glasses and contacts is perhaps the first criteria.

Lets face it: The easy lifestyle that this type of surgery promotes is just one of the advantages that past patients can agree on. Plus, its the kind of surgery that may benefit so many different people, from millennials to baby boomers, the extreme athlete to the amateur yogi. With a vision correction procedure, you no longer have to worry about bringing your glasses to the beach with you. You wont have to insert your contact lenses before spinning class, either. A vision correction procedure makes for a get-up-and-go way of livingisnt it time you started living yours?

Since LASIK procedures first gained approval from both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada in the nineties, they have only become more routinebecause everyone wants to make life a little less complicated.

Can You Get Lasik If You Have Astigmatism

You may be asking yourself, can you get lasik if you are astigmatic. Hopefully, the information in this article answers these questions, and will help you decide if this procedure is right for you. In addition, you may be wondering, will lasik make my eyes look different after the procedure? Read on to find out! LASIK is a great option for people with astigmatism. It is a fast and safe way to correct your vision, thereby reducing your risk of complications.

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Three To Six Months After Surgery:

The total healing time usually takes about six months. However, if you have a high prescription, your eyes may take a bit longer to heal.

Your vision typically stabilizes during this time. If your vision is still blurry, the surgeon can evaluate you for an enhancement procedure or prescribe eyeglasses.

Lasik In Patients With Aids

There are no studies on the safety and efficacy of LASIK surgery in patients with HIV positivity who meet the defining criteria for AIDS . In the observational study conducted on HIV+ patients undergoing refractive surgery, none of the patients who had complications had CD4 count< 200/mm3 at the time of the surgery although prior history of AIDS was identified as a risk factor for complications in univariate analysis.

Aref et al found that refractive surgeons are much less likely to perform elective LASIK on this patient population than on those with HIV positivity without evidence of immunosuppression. Only 12.5% of responders believe AIDS patients are acceptable candidates for refractive surgery, while the vast majority believes it to be a relative or absolute contraindication.

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Can Eye Herpes Be Prevented

While there is no foolproof way to prevent an eye herpes infection or any other type of eye infection, for that matter there are steps you can take to reduce your risk.

The most important thing to remember is to keep your eyes and hands clean . Furthermore, it’s critical that you avoid touching your eyes if you or someone around you has an outbreak.

If you wear contact lenses, be sure to follow your eye doctor’s instructions on contact lens care. Do not wear them longer than recommended and do not wear them while swimming, as chemicals and germs in the water can damage the lens, irritate your eyes, and cause an infection in contact lens wearers.

Herpes Simplex Keratitis After Lasik

Ocular herpes is one of the leading causes of blindness from corneal disease worldwide. LASIK may lead to herpes simplex virus activation, resulting in sight-threatening herpes simplex keratitis lesions.

Problems from Lasik? File a MedWatch report with the FDA online. Alternatively, you may call FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 to report by telephone, download the paper form and either fax it to 1-800-FDA-0178 or mail it to the address shown at the bottom of page 3, or download the MedWatcher Mobile App for reporting LASIK problems to the FDA using a smart phone or tablet. Read a sample of LASIK injury reports currently on file with the FDA.

Patients with LASIK complications are invited to

Case report: Herpes Simplex Infection at Apex of Post-LASIK Cornea With Ectasia

Traumatic injury to the cornea by LASIK surgery may lead to compromised immune response. The photo below shows the cornea of a patient who developed ectasia and herpes simplex infection after LASIK. The patient presented with extreme pain and redness of the eye. Expensive anti-viral medications were prescribed. This condition may lead to permanent scarring with associated vision loss and need for corneal transplant. Click photo to enlarge.

Peripheral herpes simplex keratitis following LASIK. Kamburoglu G, Ertan A. J Refract Surg. 2007 Oct 23:742-3.

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Can You Get Lasik Surgery If You Have Astigmatism

Curated by Claudia Shannon / Research Scientist / ishonest

You can be a candidate for laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis if you have mild to moderate astigmatism. LASIK may help many people with vision correction, including:

• astigmatism
• nearsightedness
• farsightedness

These are all known as refractive eye conditions. LASIK is a type of laser surgery that corrects your vision by altering the shape of your cornea. Successful procedures can eliminate your need to wear glasses or contacts.

Your Eyes Arent Healthy

• Eye infection: Any eye infection, including pink eye and herpes, mean you cant get laser eye surgery until your eyes heal completely.
• Eye injury: Including healing eye injuries or permanent damage.
• Dry eye: Laser eye surgery can make persistent or severe dry eye worse as dry eye is a common side effect.
• Cataracts: Cataracts mean you cant get LASIK or PRK, but you may be eligible for a lens replacement surgery.
• Glaucoma: Laser eye surgery can increase your eye pressure and worsen glaucoma.

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Your Corneas Are Thick Enough

The higher your prescription, the more corneal tissue the laser must remove to correct your vision. When undergoing LASIK, the surgeon cuts a flap on your cornea, then uses a laser to remove tissue underneath the flap. If your corneas are thin, LASIK can increase your chances of corneal ectasia, which is a vision-threatening condition that causes abnormal corneal thinning.

Modern LASIK techniques, such as bladeless LASIK, may require less corneal tissue. , another type of laser eye surgery, is an alternative if you are not eligible for LASIK. Refractive lens exchanges and phakic intraocular lens implants are also potential options.

Did You Know You Can Get Herpes In The Eye

Heres an unexpected differential diagnosis for anyone whos ever had pink eye eye herpes. As nasty as that sounds, at least you can tell everyone the strain of herpetic eye disease is typically type I, which is the same strain that causes cold sores, rather than the type II strain of the herpes down there.The herpes simplex virus is exceedingly common throughout the world, considered globally endemic by the World Health Organization . Most primary HSV type I infections occur during childhood via transmission of saliva carrying the virus, though many children wont exhibit any symptoms at the time of receiving the virus. Because the virus then remains in the body throughout life, whether in a dormant state or actively causing you problems, the prevalence of HSV infection worldwide, whether type I or II or both, is around 90%. In the Americas, WHO estimates 40-50% of the population under the age of 50 are host to the HSV type I virus. Sounds like the start of a zombie horror movie, doesnt it? It gets worse an estimated 400,000 Americans have had eye herpes at some point, and every year we see around 50,000 new or repeated cases.

Herpetic eye infections usually occur in one eye only, which may help to differentiate the pink eye from the more garden variety viral conjunctivitis. Despite this, symptoms tend to be non-specific:

• Sudden eye pain
• Blurry vision from swelling and clouding of the cornea
• Red eye
• Swelling of the eyelids
• Light sensitivity

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Can Lasik Cause Astigmatism

If you have astigmatism, you may want to ask your surgeon whether LASIK can correct the condition. The answer is likely no. However, it is worth asking because it could affect your treatment. To find out, your doctor will need to first evaluate your eye health. It is possible that LASIK can cause astigmatism. If so, you should discuss the matter with your surgeon before proceeding with the procedure.

LASIK surgery creates a flap on the cornea. This flap may tear, and you may experience irregular tissue growth during the healing process. This uneven tissue removal can cause astigmatism, a condition that can result in blurry vision at any distance. To avoid this, your surgeon must use topographic guidance and next-generation laser equipment. Even if the flap heals unevenly, there is a chance that you will have some degree of astigmatism after LASIK.

After LASIK, your cornea may still have some amount of astigmatism, which is normal. LASIK can be an effective solution for astigmatism. The procedure reshapes the cornea and restores normal function to the eye. However, LASIK can affect the cost of astigmatism. Astigmatism affects LASIK costs and you should consult with your surgeon to find out if LASIK is right for you.

Lasik Candidates Should Have Overall Good Health:

• To be a candidate for LASIK eye surgery, you should not have any autoimmune diseases, such as Lupus, rheumatoid arthritis or multiple sclerosis.
• If you have diabetes, it must be well managed and under good control.
• Certain health conditions may require medications that can slow or prevent healing. You should tell your surgeon about all the medications you are taking and have taken in the last year.
• You cannot be pregnant or nursing, or plan to become pregnant in the next 6 months following surgery. If nursing and considering LASIK laser eye surgery, you should wait at least 3 months after youve stopped. Hormonal fluctuations can affect visual stability.

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Find Out For Sure If Laser Eye Surgery Is Right For You

The best way to know whats right for you is a laser eye surgery consultation. During a laser eye surgery consultation, your optometrist will be able to evaluate your eye health and your options.

An optometrist can discuss any of your concerns, and detect things you cant on your own, like large pupils or thin corneas. Your optometrist can also discuss the risks and benefits, so you can make the best decision for you.

Can I Have Laser Eye Surgery If I Have Connective Tissue Disorders

These conditions can be associated with altered healing responses by the body, and therefore present a slightly higher risk of complications after laser treatment. There is a possibility that you may be suitable if the connective tissue disorder is controlled. We assess this on a case-by-case basis and will provide you with an answer at the initial screening.

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What Is Lasik Surgery

Laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis surgery is the most famously known and performed laser surgery to correct vision problems. In this surgery, a special laser is used to mold the shape of your cornea to enhance your vision. By having this surgery, you’ll no longer need to wear prescription glasses or contact lenses.

Your Prescription Is Within Range

LASIK procedures can treat a wide range of prescriptions, including myopia , hyperopia , and astigmatism. The treatment range varies between different types of LASIK procedures. Your eye surgeon can help you determine which type of LASIK is right for you.

FDA-approved excimer lasers for LASIK in the United States can correct approximately:

• -11.00 diopters of nearsightedness
• +5.00 D of farsightedness
• 5.00 D of astigmatism

However, LASIK surgeons will have their own limits on how poor your vision can be. Most surgeons offer a free LASIK consultation to determine whether you’re a good candidate or not.

If your prescription is too high, the surgeon may recommend an alternative vision correction surgery. A refractive lens exchange and phakic intraocular lens implant are two procedures that can correct higher prescriptions. They both involve the insertion of an artificial lens implant into your eyes.

Questions about LASIK? to speak with an experienced Patient Counselor who can answer all your questions and set up a free consultation. No commitment required.

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Your Pupils Are Not Too Large

Common post-LASIK symptoms include glare, halos, and starbursts at night.

Previously, eye doctors linked these symptoms to pupils that were larger than the LASIK treatment zone, particularly in dim light. However, many studies show that with modern LASIK procedures and wider treatment zones, large pupils do not significantly affect visual outcomes.

The eye surgeon takes your pupil measurements into account when determining your vision correction procedure plan. Another thing to keep in mind is that your pupils are larger when you are young and get smaller over time.

Lasik Surgery In Hiv Positive Patients

When HIV was first recognized by the Center for Disease Control 30 years ago, it was considered a lethal disease. Since that time, advances in research, and the development of highly active anti-retroviral therapy have resulted in the transition of HIV from a deadly illness to a chronic disease. The World Health Organization estimates that advances in HIV treatment have added 14.4 million life years to patients with HIV worldwide.

As HIV/AIDS patients live significantly longer lives, more patients are requesting LASIK refractive surgery to address visual acuity issues. The United States FDA recommendations list HIV infection as a relative contraindication for LASIK surgery however a number of practitioners believe that LASIK can be safely and effectively performed in HIV positive patients, so long as patients are appropriately selected, and practitioners adhere diligently to universal precautions.

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Reduce Your Risk Of Exposure To Eye Herpes

There are no clear ways to prevent the spread of herpes keratitis, but there are some steps you can take to keep your eyes safe.

• If you have cold sores, avoid touching your eyes. Wash your hands after you touch your lips during an outbreak to prevent spreading the virus to other areas.
• Do not share eye drops or eye makeup with others. The herpes virus can be transferred this way.
• Keep your contact lenses clean, as recommended by your optometrist. If you experience a herpes outbreak, throw out that pair of contacts.

If you are cautious, you can avoid transferring the virus to other areas of your body. It does take vigilance during outbreaks.

In the first year after contracting eye herpes, 20 percent of people will experience a recurrence of symptoms. If outbreaks become frequent, they can be managed with regular, often daily, medication. Otherwise, your doctor will prescribe medication that you will take only as needed, during your less frequent outbreaks.

For some people, the outbreaks are more frequent and more severe initially. Then, they stabilize over time and become less frequent.

While you may never need medication to treat eye herpes, it is important to get an appropriate diagnosis if you experience the symptoms listed above. Having more than one outbreak puts you at risk for scarring inside your cornea and other parts of your eye, which can lead to serious vision loss over time.

You Have Other Conditions That Affect Your Eye Health

• Pregnant or nursing: Pregnancy can cause vision changes, and the medication you might need after laser eye surgery isnt safe for pregnant or nursing women.
• Diabetes: Your blood sugar levels must be well controlled, and you cant have diabetic eye disease like diabetic retinopathy.
• Autoimmune disease/taking immunosuppressants: Issues with your immune system can increase your risk of infection.
• Chronic pain conditions: Some people with conditions like fibromyalgia and migraines have more severe postoperative pain.

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