Common Laser Eye Surgery Myths: Prescription Too high

High prescription doesn’t count you out as a candidate for laser eye surgery.

With modern technology, virtually any prescription can be corrected, including extremely high prescriptions. The average patient (meaning nearsighted) I perform LASIK on is 3.00 diopters. For high prescriptions, lens surgery (ICL or IOL) is a much better alternative than LASIK/PRK. I recently performed ICL surgery followed three months later by PRK on a patient from Turkey who had a prescription of -23.00 diopters. Every surgeon told her that she saw in her native country that there was nothing that could be done for her vision other than contact lenses, which constantly moved and blurred because of her unusually steep corneas. After her surgery, she saw better in each eye than she ever had with glasses or contacts!

Another example: I recently performed a successful vision correction surgery on a woman who was -27.00 diopters in her only eye, which also had a cataract! Because of her huge prescription, she needed a minus (reverse) power IOL
with implantation of an ICL at the same surgery because she needed a minus power IOL higher than what is manufactured by any company. Proof positive that no prescription is too high for current lens technology.

If you have a high prescription and are looking to laser eye surgery, contact us to schedule your FREE refractive eye exam.

Dr. Paul J. Dougherty

Medical Director – Dougherty Laser Vision