Can optometrist find out if you had lasik in the past?
Cara J asked:
One of my freind has had lasik about 8 years back when she was about -6, and the surgery reduced it to near zero.Now she is back to -3.She has an eye test and she wanted to know if the person conducting the eye test can find out if she has eye surgery if she didnt disclose him/her?
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One of my freind has had lasik about 8 years back when she was about -6, and the surgery reduced it to near zero.Now she is back to -3.She has an eye test and she wanted to know if the person conducting the eye test can find out if she has eye surgery if she didnt disclose him/her?
December 1st, 2009 at 6:26 am
Sometimes it is possible to still she a very fine line or scar in the cornea from where the laser was done.
It would be silly of your friend not to tell her optician her full previous clinical history because it can have an impact on a few of the tests.
For example, anyone who has had laser treatment in the past, it would have an effect on the pressure reading that the optician will get and the optician needs to know that they have had laser surgery in order to correctly interpret these results Baby
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:56 am
it depends on the equipment the optometrist uses. theres a camera called a fundus which can take a picture of the back of your eye and it shows up everything, any new or old damage, surgery etc.
its best that your friend discloses any info regarding her eyes health that she can. any current probs may be more easily resolved if the optometrist knows of the history tike
December 5th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Yes. After LASIK, your doctor can see a faint outline of the surgical flap created in your cornea during the surgery. If you have had PRK (laser vision correction in which no flap is made) it is difficult to tell that surgery was performed. Brett L
December 7th, 2009 at 8:27 am
I think it is appropriate for your friend to disclose the fact that she had LASIK surgery done to the optometrist before undergoing any testing. She needs to understand that she is going for an eye exam, not putting the optometrist through a test. The eye examination will be more appropriate if she discloses the fact of surgery.
Having said this, I think that the answer on whether the optometrist can find out about LASIK depends on a couple of things. First, in some people, the slit lamp exam will reveal a faint scar showing the margin of the flap. However, this is not definitive, since not everyone has a scar. The optometrist can also make out corneal flattening in the central zone on slit lamp. This just requires careful slit lamp examination. Finally, there is an instrument known as a corneal topographer, which will also show flattening. However, the optometrist may not have the instrument, or may not bother if the patient is not suspected to have had LASIK done.
In conclusion, a careful optometrist should be able to tell if LASIK was done on the eye. If the patient is simply seen to have come for a routine examination, and is not seen especially carefully, it is possible that a -3 Diopter correction is missed. samir_brd
December 9th, 2009 at 6:43 am
Fundus cameras will not illicit laser eye surgery - this camera looks at the fundus surprisingly, not a part of the eye that is exposed or affected by laser eye treatment (retinal detachments aside…)
Your friend needs to disclose her treatment history. -6 to Plano and back to -3 after 8 years is not regression! I wouldn’t be all that surprised if the current prescription is not -3.00D of cylinder (astigmatism). One of the potential long term risks of LASIK treatment is Post-LASIK ectasia. Either way - I wouldn’t bother seeing a high street optometrist - go back to the original clinic that conducted treatment or attend a specialist laser eye clinic (not Optical Express, Optimax or Ultralase - a specialist! -). I intend no disrespect to high street optoms, but the type of corneal diagnostic equipment necessary to look at potential complications do not exist commonly on the high street.
Best of luck FMJ