If you have astigmatism, you're probably used to hearing that certain corrective lenses aren't right for your eyes. Depending on the severity of your astigmatism, you may not be able to get contact lenses or you might need thicker lenses than the average glasses-wearer. However, the good news is, people with astigmatism do qualify for laser eye surgery. To make matters even better, you could potentially be cured of your astigmatism with laser eye surgery. Read on to learn more about how astigmatism and laser eye surgery go together.

How Astigmatism Works

Whether you or someone you love has astigmatism, you likely already know that it distorts the way the world looks to the person who has it. While poor vision comes in many forms, astigmatism is specifically a distortion of the cornea on the surface of the eye.

Corneas tend to change shape throughout one's life, which is why vision prescriptions need to be updated on a regular basis. However, if you're born with astigmatism, your cornea is permanently shaped abnormally in an asymmetrical shape. Even if your vision would otherwise be perfect, having this abnormal shape means your vision won't be perfectly clear.

What Laser Eye Surgery Does

Laser eye surgery is designed to reshape the cornea in order to restore it to the size and shape it used to be, or even better than the person has ever experienced. It all depends upon the severity of your vision problems.

A lot of problems happen with corneas as people age. In addition to their shape changing, they can develop problems like cataracts. Laser eye surgery uses microscopic measurements to reshape the cornea and restore vision to those who can't see clearly without glasses or contacts. These results are typically permanent and no more than one treatment is needed to fix one's vision.

How It Fixes Astigmatism

Believe it or not, laser eye surgery can actually get rid of astigmatism entirely. Laser eye surgery can change the shape of an asymmetrical cornea, just like it can with an older cornea that's changed shape over time. As a result, you can generally expect that you will have clearer vision than you've ever experienced in your life following laser eye surgery.

Laser eye surgery can work wonders for anyone with vision problems, including people with astigmatism. If you've been worried that you wouldn't be able to get this treatment, talk to an eye doctor, such as at The Eye Center, to find out how they can help you with laser eye surgery.

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