How Long Does LASIK Eye Surgery Last? Forever?
When you’re considering surgery like LASIK, you’ll probably want to know whether it provides a permanent solution. It’s natural to wonder, “How long does LASIK last?” This is especially true since eyesight typically changes throughout your life. Will LASIK be a permanent solution?
Let’s take a closer look at how LASIK eye surgery works to correct your vision so that you know what to expect from the life of your surgery.
Is LASIK Permanent?
Yes, LASIK eye surgery permanently reshapes the cornea, or the surface of the eye, to fix imperfections and correct the shape or curvature of your cornea. Any corrections to aberrations, or refractive errors, made during your surgery will be permanent as well. This begs the question: does LASIK last forever? That answer is a little more complex.
Because the corrections made during your LASIK procedure are permanent, your vision will never regress back to its pre-surgery condition. However, all eyes tend to change with age. As you get older, your eyes, and therefore your vision, may change, causing issues like farsightedness or nearsightedness to gradually worsen. Similar to how a glasses prescription won’t last forever, your vision probably won’t stay the same forever either, even after LASIK.
How Long Does LASIK Last?
Your LASIK procedure will last your whole life. But, again — this doesn’t mean you won’t ever need another form of vision correction. After about age 40, the eye’s lens begins to lose elasticity and becomes stiffer, which makes it harder for your eyes to focus on fine details, small print, or things held close to your eyes. This is called presbyopia, and it’s one of the most common vision problems experienced by people over 40.
LASIK can’t stop presbyopia from occurring with age, but it corrects other vision errors for the remainder of your life. Most patients remain happy with their vision following LASIK for at least 10 years. After that, it’s possible for your eyes to have changed enough to require additional correction.
Studies in the United States show that about 10% of patients required retreatment within 12 years because of vision changes due to age. Another study in Taiwan showed that retreatment was required after 10 years for about 35% of patients. This was also largely due to natural age-related eye changes. Some patients are happy enough with the results that they opt to just wear glasses to correct age-related vision issues instead of seeking additional surgical treatment.
Does LASIK Wear Off?
Some people believe that LASIK needs to be redone every 10 years. While it is possible that you could need additional vision correction after 10 to 12 years, it won’t be due to LASIK wearing off. LASIK eye surgery is a permanent procedure. So, while the need for LASIK correction every 10 years is a myth, this myth is probably attributed to the age-related presbyopia that all eyes are subject to.
Other issues could develop over time as well, like cataracts or glaucoma, both of which could also impact your vision. However, these issues are unrelated to your LASIK procedure. Still, if you feel like your LASIK is “wearing off,” see your eye doctor for a full eye exam. From there, you can determine what is causing your new vision problems and choose the best course for correcting them.
If your vision does change after about 10 years, you may choose to look into LASIK enhancement to correct new vision problems. You should talk to your eye doctor about how to effectively and successfully improve your current vision.
Solutions for vision changes after LASIK
If the cause of your new vision changes is due to presbyopia or other issues, you may need to discuss any number of options. These could include:
- Lens replacement surgery for cataracts
- Surgical treatments for glaucoma
- Monovision LASIK for presbyopia
- Reading glasses
If you’re experiencing presbyopia, then you may want to consider monovision LASIK to treat the condition. This common condition occurs frequently with age and is the reason you start to hold things further and further away to read them. Monovision LASIK can help by allowing the eye surgeon to fully correct your distance vision in your dominant eye, while making the other eye slightly nearsighted. The result is sharper near vision.
If you’re wondering, “How long does monovision LASIK last?” the answer is the same as with other LASIK procedures. Monovision LASIK, like all LASIK surgeries, is a permanent procedure. As such, while it can’t stop presbyopia from progressing, it can decrease the impact since the correction will last your whole life.
What Is the Long Term Impact of LASIK
In addition to wondering,”How long does LASIK eye surgery last?” many patients wonder if there are any other long term effects that come with LASIK surgery. Like any other surgical procedure, LASIK comes with a very small risk of complications and side effects. However, LASIK is one of the safest elective surgical procedures performed today and has an estimated complication rate well below 1%.
In fact, there’s a significantly higher likelihood of experiencing complications due to contact lenses than LASIK. Studies show that 1 out of every 500 contact lens wearers is affected by serious eye infections that can lead to blindness. In contrast, LASIK has never been the cause of blindness in any patient.
Before approving you for LASIK eye surgery, your eye surgeon will ensure that you are a good LASIK candidate. This is a careful screening process, during which your eye surgeon will review your medical history and ensure you have had a thorough eye exam to determine your eligibility. Every patient’s eyes and health are unique, so this review process ensures that LASIK is a good match for you and your vision correction needs.
As such, the procedure you receive is able to precisely target your needs, minimizing the likelihood of complications and side effects. More than 96% of patients report satisfaction with their vision results, and this high satisfaction rate and extremely low rate of complications make the procedure highly successful for the majority of patients. For most patients, the long term impacts are extremely beneficial, permanently improving their vision and their quality of life.
Is LASIK the Permanent Vision Solution for You?
Now you know the answer to, “How long does LASIK last, and does it wear off?” With this information, you can prepare for your LASIK surgery with realistic expectations about your vision correction. While LASIK can’t stop age-related vision problems like presbyopia or cataracts, it can help resolve other vision errors that may be even more problematic. Because of this, the majority of patients are extremely happy with the results. And, since LASIK won’t make presbyopia worse or cause or worsen cataracts—just more myths!—you can trust that your LASIK will set you up for years of improved vision.
It’s also helpful to know that getting LASIK also won’t prevent you from getting other necessary eye surgeries in the future, should you need them. There’s no need to wonder, “How long does LASIK eye surgery last?” Your LASIK correction will last a lifetime, and any other corrections needed can still be addressed when the time comes. If a highly experienced eye surgeon recommends LASIK for your eyes, you can feel confident that it’s the right choice for you.
Visit Dello Russo Laser Vision for LASIK Today
Now you can answer, “How long does LASIK last, and does LASIK wear off?” With this information, you can prepare for your LASIK surgery with realistic expectations about your vision correction. While LASIK can’t stop age-related vision problems like presbyopia or cataracts, it can help resolve other vision errors that may be even more problematic. Because of this, the majority of patients are extremely happy with the results. And, since LASIK won’t make presbyopia worse or cause or worsen cataracts—more myths—you can trust that your LASIK will set you up for years of improved vision.
LASIK also won’t prevent you from getting other necessary eye surgeries in the future, should you need them. There’s no need to wonder, “Does LASIK last forever?” Your LASIK correction will last a lifetime, and any other corrections needed can be addressed when the time comes. If a highly experienced eye surgeon recommends LASIK for your eyes, you can feel confident that it’s the right choice for you.
At Dello Russo Laser Vision, we believe the decision to get LASIK should be a collaborative process between you and your eye surgeon. We always start with a complimentary initial consultation to get a clear idea of your vision needs. To determine whether you are a good candidate for LASIK surgery, you’ll also supply necessary health information and get a thorough eye exam to see whether your eyes are a good match for this particular laser surgery. From there, we can develop a personalized treatment plan just for you and your unique eyes.
We invite you to explore our website to learn more about Dello Russo Laser Vision and our team of experienced, World Class LASIK Surgeons. We have been the leading eye care providers in the Northeast for more than 31 years, and we’re proud of our legacy of service to our community. We hope you’ll join our many satisfied patients and make your appointment to discuss your laser eye surgery today. Explore our website to get more information about the surgery itself with our LASIK FAQs, or to get valuable insight into the LASIK recovery timeline. Contact us or give us a call at (855) 646-2020 to book your free initial consultation today. We look forward to helping you achieve better vision!
How Long Does LASIK Last: FAQs
Does LASIK last forever?
LASIK eye surgery is a permanent vision correction procedure. That means the changes made to your corneas are permanent as well, correcting the vision errors you have at the time of the surgery. However, LASIK cannot prevent further changes to your eyes due to age or other causes. As such, additional causes may change your vision over time, rendering your LASIK correction less effective.
Can I get LASIK again after 10 years?
Yes, it is possible to get LASIK again after ten years if you need it. However, only a small percentage of LASIK patients need a LASIK enhancement, even after 10 years or more. If you feel you need additional correction after your initial LASIK procedure, see your eye surgeon for a thorough eye exam. It may be that there are other issues with your vision that cannot be corrected with LASIK.
How many times can you do LASIK?
Generally speaking, there is no limit on the number of times you can get LASIK. However, since tissue is removed from your cornea during the procedure, you are limited by the thickness of your corneas. Other factors may also impact whether you are a good candidate for LASIK enhancement. The great news is that most LASIK patients never feel the need for another treatment. If you want further correction, see your eye surgeon for a thorough evaluation.
How long does monovision LASIK last?
Monovision LASIK is a permanent vision correction procedure, just like any other LASIK surgery. Tissue is removed from your corneas, but in different ways on each eye to provide different vision results with this type of LASIK enhancement. Since your dominant eye is corrected for distance vision, and your non-dominant eye for near vision, you will have different vision in each eye. Your brain will need to adjust to this, which typically takes 6 to 8 weeks.
Sources:
https://www.visioncenter.org/lasik/monovision/
https://clevelandeyeclinic.com/2022/03/03/how-long-does-lasik-last/
