Question: I Am Considering LASIK to Treat Astigmatism Using the IntraLase Method?
I often sleep in my contacts and am concerned with how that will effect the readiness of my eyes for the procedure.
Answer: While there are some contact lenses that have been FDA approved for overnight wear, many eye care professionals still consider sleeping in contact lenses of any sort to be an unnecessary risk. Prior to any laser refractive procedure, your vision prescription will need to be measured. An accurate measurement requires a cornea that is healthy and stable. If you have been wearing contact lenses (or sleeping in them), the doctor might require you to remain out of lenses for a period of time (1-2 weeks or longer depending on the type of contact lenses and the shape of the cornea).
If you refrain from contact lenses for a sufficient period of time, the corneas will stabilize and previous contact lens wear should not be an issue in preventing you from having a laser vision correction procedure. IntraLase is one technology used in laser vision correction. As long as no other problems exist, IntraLase should be available to you regardless of your contact lens wear history.