Don’t Get Stuck with Astigmatism

If you suffer from blurred vision, if may be because you have astigmatism.  This minor eye problem occurs when you have a curvature in your lens.  It is easily treatable.  Astigmatisms happen when, instead of having a smooth, rounded lens, there is a rougher or flatter area.  It usually occurs alongside nearsightedness or farsightedness.  Astigmatisms are generally present at birth with most people; however, most of the time, it does not progress past the point of needing a diagnosis.  Many times, astigmatisms are fixed by wearing corrective contact lenses.  However, if you do not wish to wear contact lenses any longer, astigmatism surgery is something that you may wish to consider.  The costs of eye surgery, especially with astigmatism are expensive and, unlike most corrective lens surgeries, astigmatism surgery will most likely not be covered under any insurance plan.

Refractive lens surgery or Lasik surgery reshapes the eye lens, making it smooth and “normal”.  In Lasik surgery, a laser is used to make a thin, circular hinged cut into your cornea.  Once lifted, a different laser is then used to sculpt the new shape of your lens and then it is placed back onto your cornea.   If you opt for photorefractive laser surgery, the entire lens is removed entirely before the sculpting process begins.  Afterwards, it is then replaced back onto the cornea.

An ophthalmologist can determine the severity of your astigmatism and can tell you if you are a prime candidate for surgery.  Anyone who is in good health and has their eyes checked regularly by an eye doctor will qualify for this minimally invasive procedure.  A battery of tests will be run to see how bad your astigmatism is.  An instrument called a Keratometer measures the reflected light from the surface of your cornea quantifying the amount and exact position of your astigmatism.  A Videokeratoscope is also used to determine the amount of change that happens to the astigmatism during a set amount of time.

There are definite things that you should consider when deciding whether or not to pursue this direction of getting surgery for your astigmatism; the recovery time, pain level, the costs of eye surgery and whether or not it will be beneficial to your lifestyle.  Some of the positive aspects about this procedure is that you are there on an outpatient level so an overnight stay will not be required; there are no injections into the sight (only an eye drop anesthetic is administered) and the procedure only takes about 5 minutes per eye.  Some negative things to consider is the fact that you will have to be paying for this surgery out of your own pocket, you run the small risk of infection and you sometimes run the risk of having to get the procedure done again if the laser did not remove the astigmatism entirely.

With astigmatism procedures, the costs of eye surgery can be extremely expensive.  Since astigmatism surgeries are not covered under most insurance plans, you must determine how well you will benefit from this procedure.  Astigmatism surgery costs averages about $2200.  Many medical offices will accept payment plans with a certain percentage down.  Ask your doctor about these plans and if they will work for you.