Lasik safer than contacts?

Researchers now say Lasik surgery is safer than prolonged contact lens use.

Infections from constant use of contacts can affect one in two thousand lens wearers. Only one in ten thousand risk complications that reduce optimum sight with Lasik surgery. As the technologies in Lasik surgery get more sophisticated, the risk becomes less.

People tend to forget that contact lenses are medical devices, and anytime you put something “foreign” in your eye, you risk serious infection. You have to be meticulous about lens cleanliness and should never assume the lenses are safe. The risk of infection for daily users can be as high as one in a hundred. Names like Acanthemeba and Fusarium have been linked to sight loss and even eye removal.

All eye doctors are aware of the potential dangers of contact lens infections. Tens of millions of Americans may be at risk of these serious infections for which there is no prevention. Basically everyone wearing lenses is at risk. Lasik surgery however has gotten much safer statistically. So if you are tired of glasses or contact lens maintenance it might be a good time to revisit Lasik.