You should not be suffering from any active eye diseases such as cataract, glaucoma, retinal detachment or keratoconus. If you suffer from severe dry eyes or a past ocular herpes infection, you may also not be a good candidate. Also, be sure to tell your doctor if you or anyone in your family has ever had a cornea disorder, diabetes or autoimmune disorder. You should not be taking certain prescription drugs like oral prednisolone. These conditions may increase the risk of serious complications.

Lasik cannot be done if you are pregnant. Persons with an obsessive nature or who have great difficulty finding glasses to suit their eyesight are also advised against treatment.

Lasik stands for Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis. It is now widely considered as the procedure of choice for the correction of most cases of myopia. In selected cases, it can also be used to correct mild to moderate degrees of astigmatism and farsightedness.

Lasik is sometimes called the "flap and zap" procedure.

It combines an established cutting technique using a cutting device called the microkeratome with the more recently developed excimer laser technique so that sight is improved without the need for glasses or contacts. First, a circular superficial cornea flap is made with the help of the microkeratome. Next, the flap is folded back to allow the excimer laser to reshape the deeper layers of the cornea according to the patient's spectacles prescription. The flap is then folded back and will adhere itself naturally without the need for stitches.

The entire surgical procedure takes only 10 minutes or less per eye. The actual amount of time the laser is active on the eye is only one minute or less.