lasik criteria

What is the general criteria for lasik corrective procedures? I am 50, very healthy, been wearing glasses since I am 9, near-sighted as well as astigmatism. Of course, now I wear progressives. For some reason, I have always thought that I would not be appropriate for LASIK. What do you think?

[EyeNut]

Quite a few things factor in to whether someone is suitable or not. A few of the most important ones:

1) Healthy corneal tissue.
2) Good ocular health, no pathology of the conjunctiva, sclera and normal intra-ocular pressures.
3) Sufficient tear secretion. Too low a tear secretion can negatively influence the healing process of the cornea.
4) Corneal thickness. There needs to be enough corneal tissue to be removed in order to facilitate shaping the new power of the cornea.
5) The actual power. Since, the higher the power, the more tissue needs to be removed.
6) Pupil size. In cases where there is a fairly high power (+/- 6.00 dpt) and young patients (large pupils), the new curvature of the cornea can lead to abberations in vision if the pupil is large.  

These are some of the main concerns. Different doctors and clinics might hold different standards, but these factors should always play a major role in choosing a procedure that's right for you. Astigmatism isn't a problem nowadays, unless the power of the astigmatism is very high.

More often then not, in order to be sure whether you qualify for LASIK, contact a clinic and make an intake appointment. Every clinic will first make an appointment for in intake examination is performed, checking the above point.