Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffLASIK eye surgery is a procedure that corrects certain vision problems, reducing or eliminating the need for eyeglasses or corrective lenses. LASIK is short for laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis, the technical term for the surgical procedure.
LASIK eye surgery is the most common type of refractive surgery. Refractive surgery changes the shape of your cornea — the transparent membrane that arcs over your pupil and the colored part of your eye (iris) — to bend (refract) light rays to focus more precisely on your retina rather than at some point beyond or short of your retina.
The goal of LASIK eye surgery is to produce clearer, sharper vision.
Why it's done
References
- Bower KS. Laser refractive surgery. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 4, 2008.
- Sakimoto T, et al. Laser eye surgery for refractive errors. The Lancet. 2006;367:1432.
- Doane JF, et al. LASIK: Indications and techniques. In: Yanoff M, et al. Ophthalmology. 2nd ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby, Inc.; 2004. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/109505671-2/0/1197/24.html?tocnode=50819839&fromURL=24.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-01634-0..50024-9_519. Accessed Nov. 4, 2008.
- Wavefront-guided LASIK. American Academy of Ophthalmology. http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZ5NVRIREE&sub_cat=0. Accessed Nov. 4, 2008.
- What should I expect before, during, and after surgery? U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Devices and Radiological Health. http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/LASIK/expect.htm. Accessed Nov. 4, 2008.
- Schallhorn SC, et al. Perspective: Avoidance, recognition, and management of LASIK complications. American Journal of Ophthalmology. 2006;141:733.
