Is Lasik worth it over 40?

It depends on the nature of your vision problem(s) and what you are trying to achieve.

If you are myopic (nearsighted) in both eyes (blurry distance vision) but can see OK up close for reading without glasses, having LASIK for optimal distance vision in both eyes would be a trade-off of distance glasses for reading glasses. However, if one eye is deliberately under-corrected some, you can attain good distance vision and still retain useable near vision without having to use reading glasses. This is called monovision or sometimes "blended vision." Many people over 40 find this an excellent thing to do.

If you have always had excellent distance vision without glasses, LASIK would probably not provide you with the kind of improved near vision you are looking for. While monovision could be done on one eye to make it nearsighted and so good at near, it would be at the expense of the distance vision in that eye. Most people who have never had a problem at distance are not as successful at monovision, so it would be mandatory to try it out with a temporary contact lens first.

_Written by J. Trevor Woodhams, M.D. - Chief of Surgery, Woodhams Eye Clinic