Jason Randall Smith, OD,MS

You must not drive on the day of your surgery and you should have someone drive you on that day. Under most circumstances, you should be able to drive within a day or two after surgery. BUT, this totally depends upon the visual outcome of the LASIK surgery and what your doctor/refractive surgery recommends and allows. EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT and it may take some time for your vision to be optimal to be able to drive legally and successfully.
Please discuss this and any other questions that you have with your doctor, always. Good luck and best wishes.

Astigmatism is a refractive condition sometimes associated with nearsightedness or farsightedness. It is a measurement issue based upon the amount of astigmatism present and the location of the astigmatism. It is detected by doing a refraction that checks your prescription or by the use of a keratometer. It can be corrected with glasses, toric contact lenses, or refractive surgery. And, astigmatism can change as our eyes age.
Discuss your options with your eye doctor who detected this. Good luck and best wishes.

Thank you for this great question......Vision therapy can work for a "lazy eye", but there are a few things that I need to mention. "Lazy eye" can cause an eye problem called amblyopia (decreased vision due to a developmental problem) and can be refractive, strabismic, or both. This usually occurs in 1 eye only. Refractive amblyopia occurs because the amount of hyperopia, myopia, and astigmatism is so large that things that should be clear in the distance, middle range, or close are always blurry. As a result, the brain never gets a clear image and vision can be decreased forever if this is not found early enough to treat it. The strabismic amblyopia occurs from a turned eye that comes from nerve or muscle problems. This is sometimes found early enough due to the cosmetic nature of a turned eye and muscle surgery or lenses can help. And, you can have both forms of amblyopia occurring at the same time. So, to answer your question, what therapies and treatments may work? This definitely depends upon your age and how long your vision has been reduced. This is why we want children to have an early eye exam in order to detect any vision problems that can potentially be corrected at an early age. If you are 20 years of age or older, the vision problem has been there for some time. The use of eyeglass lenses, prisms, contact lenses, or eye surgery may not help. If your "lazy eye" is causing a minor vision loss without there being an eye turn present, then vision therapy or lens therapy may help. You would want to see an optometrist who does provide vision therapy. Not every optometrist provides vision therapy, FYI. So, please make an appointment with an eye doctor in order to diagnose what your actual problem is. An optometrist can determine if lens therapy or vision therapy will help you. And if the optometrist determines that eye surgery or muscle surgery may help, they will always refer you to an ophthalmologist who does this type of surgery. Good luck and best wishes.

Cataracts are found within the lens of the human eye and for most of us, develop as we get older. These are protein changes that can occur from steroid use, UV light exposure, and the aging process.
There are several types of cataracts that can be treated by changing an eyeglass prescription or contact lens prescription. If and when cataracts affect your ability to see or your quality of life, cataract surgery will be necessary which will remove the lens and the cataract and replace the lens with an IOL, an intraocular lens implant. Discuss all of your short-term and long-term options with your eye doctor. Good luck and best wishes.

There is no reason to "clean" your eyes before LASIK. Your tear film and normal blinking should provide you with any nutrients and any "cleansing action" that should occur normally unless you have a blinking problem or a tear film deficiency. It would be extremely important to be absolutely certain that you are using any and all drops that are prescribed by your eye surgeon before any procedure is done. This may include artificial tears, but this must be prescribed by your eye doctor. You do not want to do ANYTHING that can result in your surgery being cancelled because you did something that was not appropriate, recommended, or prescribed by your eye doctor.
As one example, AND THIS IS ONLY AN EXAMPLE, antibiotic eye drops such as Vigamox or Zymar are used 4X a day for 1 day prior to surgery. You should know exactly what your eye doctor will prescribe for you prior to, and after surgery, know what to do pre and post operatively, know the time of your surgery, have a driver, and be aware of all expectations, complications, pros and cons before you undergo any surgery. Remember, there is no eraser at the end of a laser or a scalpel. Good luck and best wishes.

Use Vigamox or Zymar antibiotic drops, 1 drop in the eye(s) to be treated 4 times a day for 1 day prior to surgery. The easiest schedule for most people to remember is to do one drop at breakfast, one at lunch, one at dinner, and one at bedtime.

The answer to your question is NO. But, I must define blindness in 2 ways. Legal blindness is 20/200 or less which is 10X off from 20/20. So, yes, untreated amblyopia can cause a vision reduction which is legal blindness. But will amblyopia cause a permanent vision loss where there is no vision from the amblyopic eye? NO, unless there is another serious medical condition or serious eye condition besides the amblyopia.
Amblyopia is defined as a decrease in vision, usually in 1 eye caused by refractive problems such as high myopia or high hyperopia with astigmatism or from strabismus, an eye turning, or a "lazy" eye. The brain does not receive a clear picture when looking at the distance or close, so the brain is never "turned on" to see clearly in the affected eye. And if this visual process of seeing clearly is not turned on, it can affect vision forever, unless found early enough.
That is why it is so important to "catch" this problem early in life through school screenings, at an eye doctor's office, or at a family doctor's office. If amblyopia can be found early, there may be some improvement in this visual condition using lenses. If an eye turn is caused by a muscle condition, eye muscle surgery can sometimes help in the long-term prognosis and hopefully improve vision. It is those people who are older and the amblyopia has not been diagnosed nor treated who will have reduced vision forever regardless of any intervention attempted.
Your eye doctor should provide you your actual corrected visual acuity in the amblyopia eye. What treatment is being considered including contact lenses or glasses? If you have strabismic amblyopia, is eye muscle surgery something that is being considered from a cosmetic standpoint and a visual correction perspective? Good luck and best wishes.

This is a highly personal decision that can only be answered by you and an eye surgeon. There are many factors that need to be considered before saying yes or no to eye surgery. These include your age, how stable your prescription is, your personal, professional, and occupational visual needs, any medical conditions, and any previous eye conditions. I would schedule a consultation with an ophthalmologist/refractive surgeon in order to have all of your questions answered and so that you know all of the pros, cons, complications, benefits, etc. so that you are fully aware and informed. My father, a renowned optometrist, used to say at his lectures while teaching at the PA College of Optometry, "there are no erasers at the end of a scalpel or a laser". Good luck and best wishes.

First, a definition of astigmatism; it is a measurement that is calculated by doing a refraction which is part of an eye exam that checks your prescription with lenses. Astigmatism has 2 components; how much astigmatism is present, the amount, and where it is located, from 0 to 180 degrees. Astigmatism can be corrected with eyeglass lenses, toric contact lenses, or refractive surgery. Astigmatism, myopia, and hyperopia will change as one ages, so there is not 1 "fix" that will permanently "cure" any astigmatism. Using eyeglass or contact lenses will allow you to see clearly when these devices are worn, but when taking the glasses off or removing the contact lenses from your eyes, the astigmatism will still be present. Astigmatic refractive surgery will correct the astigmatism for a period of time that needs to be discussed with an ophthalmologist in order to determine if you are a candidate for such a procedure. Good luck and best wishes.

There is LASIK astigmatism refractive surgery or implantable lenses that may be an option for you. In order to determine which surgery is available to you or if you are a candidate for any astigmatism surgery, you should meet with an ophthalmologist/refractive surgeon in order to have your eyes dilated, pressures checked, corneal thickness measured, and a refraction completed. The amount of astigmatism present as well as the location of the astigmatism will provide you and the surgeon the options that are currently present.
Like any technology, refractive surgery has changed and improved over the past many years. As an example, EVO Visian® ICL is the latest in vision correction surgery that is clinically proven to correct common vision problems such as nearsightedness (myopia) and astigmatism using an FDA-approved implantable lens. Whether your surgeon is using this procedure is something that you will have to discuss with him or her.
Good luck and best wishes.

Your surgeon should provide you all of this information including short-term and long-term issues, pros, cons, and costs so that you are fully aware and informed. And if there are vision changes in the short-term or long-term, enhancement procedures (more refractive surgeries) can be considered. But some factors that will affect your surgery and the long-term benefits include your age, your corneal thickness, the amount of astigmatism present, whether is there any other nearsightedness or farsightedness present, underlying medical conditions, other eye problems, and current medications. Good luck and best wishes.

There are 2 safe options for astigmatism and these are glasses or toric contact lenses. If you consider contact lenses, you must be fully educated as to care, solutions, and wearing times for your specific lens that is prescribed in order to reduce any risk of problems or complications by placing a contact lens in the eye. There are astigmatism refractive surgeries, but these options carry a higher risk than wearing glasses or contact lenses. My suggestion to you is, if you want to consider glasses or contact lenses, an optometrist is highly qualified to prescribe what will be best for you. If you are considering refractive surgery, you will need to see an ophthalmologist/refractive surgeon in order to determine what surgical options will be best for you. If you already know that astigmatism is present, then you must have seen an eye doctor already and they can then provide you with your options. Good luck and best wishes.

Laser surgery/ refractive surgery can always be an option for nearsightedness/myopia but there are several things that need to be evaluated and answered by you and by your ophthalmologist/refractive surgeon. These include your age. Most surgeons will wait until you are at least 21 years of age and that your prescription has not changed over a period of time and is "stable".
Your corneal thickness must be measured by a procedure called pachymetry in order to be sure that your cornea is able to withstand any surgical procedure. Do you have any underlying medical conditions and what medications are you on? Also, and a very important concern is, what are your actual prescription measurements in each eye, where a refraction will analyze this and any possible astigmatism that is present? These measurements will allow you and your surgeon to then know what surgical options are available including other non-surgical options including wearing glasses or contact lenses. And, do you have any other vision or eye problems that need to be taken into consideration? These things will be fully evaluated by an eye doctor and include a dilated exam, eye pressure measurements, and a general internal and external eye-health assessment. Good luck and best wishes.

Myopia/nearsightedness is not a disease but is a refractive condition as to how light or things that are looked at are focused in the eye. In the case of myopia, objects are focused in front of the retina when looking in the distance, so things may appear to be blurry or out of focus. Depending upon the amount of myopia present or measured, objects up close should be clear.
Myopia cannot be reversed or cured, but it can be treated. The goals of treatment are to improve your daughter's vision and to monitor your daughter for changes as she ages. Some options include glasses or contact lenses. These lenses, when placed in front of the eye refocus distance objects onto the retina so that everything will be clear and in focus. Refractive surgery may be an option in the future, but she is too young for this to be considered until at least the age of 21. Please discuss all of her options with your eye doctor, be aware that her eyes will change as she ages, and there will be a need to change her prescription with time. And FYI, I have myopia, and I have been wearing glasses and contact lenses for many years. What I particularly like is the fact that I can always take my glasses off and my computer screen and anything close is always clear. But, this totally depends upon the amount of myopia that your daughter has. Good luck and best wishes.

This is a great question that should only be answered by an eye doctor. Pink eye can be referred to as a conjunctivitis, and there are several common conjunctivitis problems, but there are actually many. The 3 most common form of pink eye/conjunctivitis are allergic, viral, and bacterial and the treatments are different. If it is bacterial, you will need an antibiotic eye drop prescription prescribed by an eye doctor. This is not an over-the-counter medication.
For a viral conjunctivitis; cold compresses and artificial tears can be used in order to help relieve some of the inflammation and dryness caused by pink eye. You can purchase these over the counter without a prescription. If you wear contact lenses, they should be removed and discarded, preferably under the care and advise of your eye doctor.
For an allergic conjunctivitis, there are some other medications that can help relieve some of the symptoms including olopatadine, afcaftadine, epinastine, and bepotastine besilate. But the best advice, again is to have an eye doctor or your family doctor check your eyes to be sure that ANY medication does not have side effects based on your age, current medications, other vision issues present.
Good luck and best wishes

In most cases, eye muscle surgery or strabismus surgery may take anywhere from 1/2 hour to 2 hours, but it would be impossible to tell you exactly considering that only your surgeon knows what muscles must be treated and how long it has taken him or her to do this type of surgery. I would check with the eye doctor in order to answer any and all of your questions so that you are aware, informed, and know exactly what to expect, before, during, and after any surgery. Good luck and best wishes.

There are no "quick fixes" in order to lower your eye pressures. Having high eye pressures is referred to as ocular hypertension. Ocular hypertension can be monitored, sometimes, as long as there is no optic nerve damage or visual field losses. This is why you must keep all appointments with an eye doctor to monitor for any optic nerve changes or visual losses. If the ocular hypertension progresses to glaucoma where there is optic nerve damage or visual field losses, then treatment will be required.
There are many types of glaucoma and they are treated differently with drops or sometimes surgery. You should fully discuss all of your options with your eye doctor in order to know what type of glaucoma you have, what are the short- term and long-term treatments, and be sure to keep all follow up appointments for dilations, visual field testing, pressure checks, and refractions. If you have ocular hypertension, you must also have your pressures checked regularly as well as have dilated exams and visual field tests.
As a general rule, and with the agreement of your family doctor and your eye doctor, a few common-sense ideas can help. Eat a healthy diet. Eating a healthy diet can help you maintain your health, but it won't prevent glaucoma or ocular hypertension from worsening. Exercise safely. And limit caffeine.

Good luck and best wishes.

There is no scientific evidence supporting the fact that eye exercises can improve myopia. Myopia is a refractive condition based on the anatomy and the "size/length" of your eye where what you look at focuses in front of the retina instead of on the retina. It is similar to taking a blurry picture until the camera is re-focused. Depending upon the amount of your myopia, distance objects will be blurry, and closer objects should be clearer. How well you may see may depend upon the fact if you have any associated astigmatism.

I will mention that there are eye exercises that can help eye muscle problems or accommodation problems, but this is not the case here.

There are ways to correct myopia including wearing glasses or contact lenses or getting refractive surgery. But these options do not "cure" myopia which will change with time and with the aging process. Refractive surgery will correct the myopia for a period of time until your eyes possibly change some more, a normal aging process.

Here is 1 of many websites for you to refer to.
https://www.umassmed.edu/news/news-archives/2024/06/eye-exercises-to-improve-sightis-there-any-science-behind-them/
Good luck and best wishes.

Before you take any medications, including over-the-counter supplements, it is absolutely necessary that you discuss this approach with your family eye doctor and your eye doctor. Many supplements have side effects and these unwanted side effects may also affect current necessary medications that you may be taking. There is no quick-fix to good eye health. Your eyes will change as you get older, and no one can eliminate the age-related changes that may occur including getting cataracts, an actual normal process that occurs within the lens of the human eye.

Certainly, getting exercise, not smoking, and eating a good healthy diet rich in nutrients are ways of possibly slowing down an aging process that affects everyone. There are no supplements that can correct nor cure myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism. Taking a multivitamin is something that many people do, but again this should be something that your family doctor knows about and agrees with you using.
There has been some information that certain supplements may reduce the onset of cataracts or macular degeneration, but this will never eliminate these eye problems.

https://mcpress.mayoclinic.org/living-well/the-best-vitamins-for-your-eyes/

From the above website, FYI:
 
"Accumulating evidence indicates that lutein and zeaxanthin may play important roles in preventing and reducing cataracts and age-related macular degeneration.
The benefits of antioxidants for eye health aren’t quite as clear. Studies of beta carotene, vitamin C, lycopene (found in tomatoes) and cryptoxanthin (found in avocados and mangoes) have produced mixed results. More research is required to establish a clear relationship between these nutrients and the prevention of eye-related diseases."

Good luck and best wishes.

Farsightedness, also called hyperopia is a refractive condition where light or things that you look at focus behind the retina. Depending upon your age and how much farsightedness you have, your eye may be able to accommodate or refocus what you are looking at onto your retina so that things will be clear and in focus. This condition will change with age and a refraction which checks your eye glass prescription will determine what you have, how much you have, and if there is any associated astigmatism present, which is very common. So, YES, glasses can help with farsightedness and allow your eyes to relax and not strain to see clearly. Since you already know that you have farsightedness, I would consult with your eye doctor in order to determine what your best options are including glasses, contact lenses, or refractive surgery. Good luck and best wishes.

Any type of surgery always has risks depending upon your age, your health, your eye health, and medications you may be taking. Myopia surgery can be considered depending upon your amount of myopia and your corneal thickness
Which refractive surgeries are available to you will be determined by having a full eye exam with dilation done. Then your refractive surgeon can provide you the options and educate you as to the risks, pros, cons, costs, and long-term effects of any surgery that will be available to you. Good luck and best wishes.