Even though different types of laser eye surgeries will each have their own qualifications regarding who will make a good candidate, there are a few qualifications that pertain to all different types of laser eye surgery. If you’re considering having laser eye surgery of any type done, looking at these qualifications and asking yourself if you fill them, is a good place to start.

Eyes must be in good general health

Although laser eye surgery is being done to correct vision problems in the eye, eyes must still be in general good health before laser eye surgery can be done. If there are any conditions of the eye, such as chronic dry eye, this would rule out laser eye surgery. Cataracts and glaucoma are also two conditions that would make one an unsuitable candidate for laser eye surgery.

Must be an adult

Most states, hospitals, clinics, and doctor’s offices require that an individual be an adult before laser eye surgery is performed. In some cases this is 18, and in others it’s 21. Procedures are sometimes done on people younger than that but these are exceptions and are usually due to very special circumstances.

Must have a steady prescription for at least one year

Surgeons need to know what the problem is, and what it’s going to be over the coming years. The eyes and prescription of young people and teenagers is constantly changing and so, it’s hard to get an accurate diagnosis of what their prescription for laser eye surgery should be. Usually surgeons like to wait until a person has had one prescription for at least one year until they consider laser eye surgery.

You should not be pregnant

The hormones that are coursing through the system during pregnancy cause many physical changes in a person; one of those is a change in the shape of the cornea. Because of this, it may cause slight vision problems. However, these problems will probably go away on their own three to six months after birth, when the hormones are in balance once again. Another reason why it’s not a good idea to get laser eye surgery done while you’re pregnant is due to the medications that are used before, during and after the procedure. These medications sometimes contain chemicals that could be harmful to an unborn baby, or a newborn that’s nursing.

You should not have degenerative or autoimmune diseases

The body does need to be able to heal itself, and do so relatively quickly after the surgery and degenerative or autoimmune diseases prohibit this from happening. Rheumatoid arthritis, AIDS, HIV, and type 1 diabetes are some of the conditions that are automatic disqualifiers for laser eye surgery.

You should not have a severe prescription

When people have a severe case of nearsightedness, it requires removing too much of the cornea in laser eye surgery in order for it to be effective. For this reason, people who have a very high prescription may be deemed an unsuitable candidate for laser eye surgery.