Refractive surgery is a surgical treatment that can improve or correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism. This operation usually frees the patient from wearing glasses or contact lenses. Learn What Age Is the Best to Get LASIK? when you continue reading.
What Is The Best Age To Undergo Refractive Surgery?
Age is an important factor to consider when scheduling an eye operation. Some minimum requirements must be met to go through the operating room. The most important requirement to consider to be able to undergo refractive surgery is that the graduation remains stable for a year before the operation. If the graduation is stable, there is a better guarantee that the surgical treatment will have a more lasting efficacy.
It is important to highlight that the visual system develops in childhood and adolescence. If the child wears glasses during this period, there may be variations in the graduation until it stabilizes upon reaching the age of majority. For this reason, the minimum age for refractive surgery is 18 years, when graduation usually stabilizes. In some cases, it may not stabilize until the age of 21.
Some adults may experience changes in their graduation. In these cases, it should have waited for its stabilization before surgery. If the graduation changes, a new laser intervention will be needed or glasses or contact lenses must be used after the operation.
At What Age Is Treatment Good?
This treatment in Kraff Eye Institute for example has no maximum age to undergo this treatment. Many elderly patients in our operating room for cataract surgery are treated with refractive surgery to obtain the best vision possible.
After refractive surgery, is the correction made maintained?
Although between 3 and 5% of patients may require a second intervention to ensure a good result, surgical treatment lasts over time. As the patient advances in age, he may present changes in graduation due to aging and deterioration of the visual system. But not because of the failure of the operation. It is important to arrange a visit with the ophthalmologist to assess the changes and possible treatments to improve vision again.
Special Cases
As we have said, refractive surgery is preferable to apply in patients of legal age and with stable graduation over a minimum of one year. In cases where the patient is a minor, or her graduation is not yet stable, it is advisable to wait for surgery. Other important factors to benefit from a good result from this treatment: a minimum thickness of the cornea and not suffering from any concomitant ocular condition such as strabismus, amblyopia, single eye, or corneal ectasias.