If you are pregnant, considering getting pregnant or are still breast feeding, it is important that you know the answer to the following questions:
- Can I have laser eye surgery if I am pregnant?
- Can I have laser eye surgery if I am planning on getting pregnant in the near future?
- Can I have laser eye surgery (Lasik or Lasek) if I am breast feeding?
Before I answer these questions it is best to first consider what happens during pregnancy in relation to your eyes. During pregnancy and lactation (breast feeding) there will be a number of hormonal changes within your body which can cause various changes to your eye such as dryness and a change of prescription. These hormone changes will only return to normal about 3 months after giving birth or when you stop breast feeding.
Can I have laser eye surgery if I am pregnant?
The answer to this is no, as your prescription in your glasses or contact lenses could change during pregnancy. This would mean that the measurements taken during your laser eye surgery consultation would not be accurate. An example of this is as follows: If prior to getting pregnant your prescription was -2.50 dioptres and during pregnancy your prescription changed to -2.00 Dioptres. During the laser eye surgery consultation (if pregnant) your prescription would be measured as -2.00 and the laser would therefore aim to correct this amount of prescription. So providing everything went to plan, following surgery your prescription would be zero. The problems lies in the fact that after you have given birth and your hormones have returned back to their normal levels, your eyes could revert back to their previous prescription (-2.50). This would mean that you would be left with -0.50 dioptres of short-sightedness and your vision would not be perfect anymore.
Another important reason you should not have laser eye surgery whilst pregnant is that you will be given steroids and antibiotics following the procedure. These can theoretically cause harm to your baby whilst you are pregnant.
It is therefore advisable to wait 3 months after giving birth before you have laser eye surgery. By this time your eyes and prescription will have changed back to what they were prior to pregnancy. More important than the length of time you wait following pregnancy is making sure your prescription has stabilised.
Can I have Lasik if I am pregnant?
Lasik is just a type of laser eye surgery and the exact same applies to what was written above for laser eye surgery. Lasek is the other type of laser eye surgery and it also advisable to wait 3 months following giving birth before you have this treatment.
Can I have laser eye surgery if I am planning on getting pregnant in the near future?
For all of the same reasons as above, if you are planning on having a baby within the next year or two you would be better advised to wait until after you have had the child. This way you can be sure you will have the best chance of getting an accurate and long lasting visual correction.
Can I have laser eye surgery (Lasik or Lasek) if I am breast feeding?
If you are still breast feeding then your hormones are still likely to be affected, meaning your vision and prescription could fluctuate. Furthermore there is a risk that the drugs used following laser eye surgery could pass to your baby during breast feeding. It is therefore advisable to wait at least 3 months following breast feeding before you should consider surgery.
In summary, if you are either pregnant, considering getting pregnant or breast feeding, it is not advisable to have laser eye surgery. As with all surgical procedures the final decision will be made by your surgeon.
To read more about laser eye surgery you can visit Treatment Saver
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