A free, evidence-based decision guide

Before you choose LASIK, take 10 minutes.

LASIK is elective, and the changes made to your cornea are permanent. Review the FDA’s warnings and independent patient-reported findings before a clinic has the opportunity to turn your decision into a sales process.

Start the 3-minute check See the FDA warnings

Independent nonprofit • No sign-up required • Primary sources linked

One question before you read

Are you considering getting LASIK?

Choose the answer that best describes where you are right now.

Your answer is stored in this browser. No sign-up is required.

Examine patient-reported outcomes

What patients report after surgery

These datasets document new symptoms, reported problems, and whether people who underwent refractive surgery would recommend it to others.

Tap each statistic to view its source.

46%

of participants with no visual symptoms before surgery reported at least one visual symptom three months after LASIK.

28%

of participants with no dry-eye symptoms before surgery reported dry-eye symptoms three months afterward.

43%

reported problems in a Japan Consumer Affairs Agency survey of people who underwent LASIK.

35.6%

of LASIK/SMILE patients in a 2025 UAE study would not recommend refractive procedures to others.

Sources: FDA LASIK Quality of Life Collaboration Project (“up to” reflects results across the two PROWL studies), Japan Consumer Affairs Agency survey, and 2025 UAE study.

Then read the warnings

The FDA’s own checklist warns LASIK can cause permanent harm

The FDA checklist tells prospective patients to consider:

  • Permanent loss of vision or blindness
  • Chronic dry eye even without dry eye before surgery
  • Glare, halos, starbursts, and difficult night driving
  • Significantly reduced vision in dim light
  • Results that may not last
  • Unknown long-term results

Source: FDA LASIK Surgery Checklist, “Know all the risks and procedure limitations.”

Watch before you decide

Two perspectives worth hearing

These investigative reports examine LASIK complications and the opinions of eye doctors opposed to LASIK.

What LASIK surgeons won’t tell you

Patient-centered context about possible outcomes to consider before entering a clinic’s sales process.

Doctors are speaking out

Medical professionals discuss why informed consent should include more than the chance of seeing 20/20.

Private decision check

Are you ready to make an informed choice?

Answer eight questions. Nothing is submitted or stored.

1Have you read the FDA warnings about permanent vision loss, chronic dry eye, visual symptoms, and reduced vision in dim light?
2Have you read the 2022 FDA Draft Patient Labeling?
3Have you had your fully dark-adapted pupil size measured by an optometrist and compared it with the standard LASIK optical zone of only 6.5 mm?
4Have you reviewed published patient-reported outcomes instead of relying on clinic testimonials or marketing statistics?
5Have you kept your decision outside the clinic sales process while you evaluate the evidence?
6Have you received a second opinion from a clinician who neither performs nor refers patients for refractive surgery?
7Do you understand that the FDA draft checklist says corneal nerves may not fully recover and the cornea will not be as strong as it was before surgery?
8Have you reviewed the FDA draft checklist’s six-month and five-year estimates for dry eye, visual symptoms, daily eye-drop use, night-driving difficulty, and severe constant pain?

Your answers stay on this device.

Keep the seller out of the decision

Why a LASIK consultation is not an independent opinion

A clinic is paid when a prospective patient says yes. Asking the clinic to estimate its own complication rate does not remove that conflict, and clinic-provided claims may use definitions or data you cannot independently audit.

You do not need a LASIK consultation to choose no surgery.

LASIK is elective. Keeping glasses—or using contact lenses when medically appropriate—avoids permanently reshaping the cornea. If you want personalized medical advice, seek it outside the refractive-surgery referral chain.

  1. The clinic has a direct financial interest in moving you from consultation to surgery.
  2. Testimonials and clinic-reported percentages are not substitutes for published, independently reviewable evidence.
  3. The FDA warns that even carefully screened patients treated by skilled surgeons can experience serious complications.
  4. Reading 20/20 on an eye chart does not measure dry eye, glare, halos, starbursts, ghosting, or night-driving difficulty.
  5. A consultation can create urgency and commitment around a procedure that is elective.
  6. Glasses and medically appropriate contact lenses correct vision without surgically removing corneal tissue.

Why 20/20 Doesn’t Guarantee Quality Vision

LASIK permanently shrinks the optical zone of your cornea. At night your pupils dilate beyond that treated zone, so light spills over the edge of the ablation—even if the eye still reads 20/20 on a chart.

Shrinking the Window You See Through

  • Healthy night pupils commonly open to 7–9 mm.
  • LASIK optical zones are typically 5.5–6.5 mm—often smaller in real-world outcomes after fully healing.
  • The mismatch creates halos, glare, starbursts, and reduced contrast that glasses can’t correct.
  • Once ablated, the larger natural optical zone can never be restored.

Dig deeper in the Suggested Reading guide, including expert commentary and measurements.

Slide to compare the full optical zone you have before LASIK with the reduced zone after surgery.

After LASIK - smaller optical zone Before LASIK - full optical zone with glasses or contacts
Before
After
Explore the Optical Zone Evidence

Verify it yourself

Read the primary sources

Read the warning sections directly. Some FDA pages later pivot to choosing a surgeon or preparing for surgery; those sections should not be mistaken for independent evidence that surgery is necessary or safe for you.

The safest deadline is no deadline.

Keep this guide and review the evidence away from a sales setting. If you want personalized medical advice, choose a clinician who neither performs nor refers patients for refractive surgery.

Complete the decision check Email this guide

This page provides general educational information and is not medical advice. Discuss your individual health and treatment options with a qualified professional.