LASIK is performed as an outpatient procedure and you are fully awake the entire time. Eye drops are placed in your eye to numb it. In some cases, a mild sedative pill also is given to patients in order to reduce anxiety. You will be asked to lie face up on a reclining chair or table. Your eyelid will be carefully held open using a special instrument while the other eye is covered with a patch.

You doctor will ask you to look directly into a light in order to fixate your eye under the laser. Then a small suction device will be used to steady your eye while a small motor-powered blade gently separates surface layers of the cornea. With the underlying corneal tissue exposed the laser application begins. This usually takes 30-60 seconds, depending on the amount of nearsightedness, farsightedness and/or astigmatism that is being treated. During the LASIK procedure you will hear tapping sounds and may detect a slight odor but this is all perfectly normal.

After the laser treatment, the corneal flap is returned to its original position where it stays in place without the need for stitches. The doctor’s last step is to place antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops in the treated eye. For patients having both eyes corrected, the second eye is uncovered and treated using the same process.