Loss of focus after LASIK

[hyon]

Hi,
I had LASIK done 7months ago.  My vision is great and I did not have any complications.  However, I can't seem to focus very well for things that are close. I can't see anything that's closer then 6 inches from my face.  Which is weird because I was able to see perfect up close before. Is this something that just needs time for my eyes to heal or is this a natural result of LASIK? Is this something that can be fixed?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Hello hyon   Your observation is an expected and NORMAL part of LASIK. Your loss of focus power will be especially noticiable if you are in your mid to late 30's or older.  Before your lasik you were myopic and the nearsightedness helped focus you eyes clearly at near, but your far away vision was bad. Now it's the opposite. At some point you will need reading glasses. Many myopic people are very happy with their myopia after their mid 40's because they can remove their glasses and read unlike farsighted and "no refractive error" patients that start to need reading glasses or bifocals.

JCH III MD  Eye MD

[JdubW]

I was not prepared or well informed about the change to my vision after Lasik. I too was myopic and was/am very depressed about the loss of the clear vision of anything within a 3 foot bubble around me. There needs to be a better protocol in place to determine how important near vision is to older patients considering Lasik.

[JohnHaganMD]

Ethical refractive practices always discuss this. Our practice does. Sometimes our patients "forget" this discussion.  That still being the case you still need to do your own research and inquiry when making major health decisions.