What is the percentage of successful recovery of vision after Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) correction surgery?

LASIK Vision Recovery Success Rates

LASIK demonstrates excellent success rates, with 94-100% of eyes achieving functional vision (20/40 or better) and 92-98% of low to moderate myopic eyes reaching within 1.00 D of intended correction, based on comprehensive systematic review data from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. 1

Success Rates by Refractive Error Type

Myopia (Nearsightedness)

Low to Moderate Myopia:

• 92% median rate of eyes achieve within 1.00 D of intended correction (range 75-100%) 1
• 98% median rate achieve uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) of 20/40 or better (range 94-100%) 1
• 99% of military patients and 96% of general population achieved binocular UCVA of 20/20 or better at 3 months in the FDA PROWL studies 1
• Only 0.6% median rate (range 0-3%) lose two or more lines of best-corrected visual acuity 1

High Myopia:

• 89% median rate achieve UCVA of 20/40 or better (range 76-97%) 1
• Lower predictability than low to moderate myopia, with more regression over time 1

Hyperopia (Farsightedness)

• 88% median rate achieve within 1.00 D of intended refraction (range 86-91%) 1
• 94-100% achieve postoperative UCVA of 20/40 or better 1
• 2-5% median rate (median 3%) lose two or more lines of best-corrected visual acuity 1
• More regression occurs with hyperopic procedures compared to myopic procedures 1

Astigmatism

Myopic Astigmatism:

• 99% median rate achieve UCVA of 20/40 or better (range 94-100%) 1

Hyperopic Astigmatism:

• 88% median rate achieve within 1.00 D of intended correction (range 88-89%) 1
• 94% achieve UCVA of 20/40 or better 1

Mixed Astigmatism:

• 95% achieve within 1.00 D of intended postoperative refraction 1
• 94% achieve postoperative UCVA of 20/40 or better 1

Long-Term Stability

• 73% of eyes remain within 1.00 D of expected correction at 10-year follow-up for myopia less than 10.00 D 1
• 54.6% demonstrate an increase in best spectacle-corrected visual acuity at 10 years 1
• Refractive stability is maintained between 1 and 7 years postoperatively with no progressive late-onset complications 2

Critical Caveats and Predictors of Success

Higher success rates occur with:

• Lower degrees of refractive error (low to moderate myopia has better predictability than high myopia) 1
• Lower preoperative corneal astigmatism correlates with better postoperative visual outcomes 3
• Myopic corrections show better stability than hyperopic corrections 1

Common pitfalls to avoid:

• Hyperopic LASIK shows more regression than myopic LASIK, requiring careful patient counseling 1
• High myopia (>6.00 D) demonstrates more regression over time compared to low myopia 1
• Approximately 35% of patients develop dry eye symptoms at 3 months post-LASIK, with 25% being new-onset cases 4
• Uncontrolled dry eye disease is a contraindication for LASIK 4

Patient Satisfaction

• 95% average patient satisfaction rate with LASIK outcomes 5
• 98.5% of patients report their main surgical goal was achieved in prospective studies 6
• Visual symptoms such as glare, halos, and dry eyes may persist, with 43-46% reporting new visual symptoms at 3 months 5

Retreatment Rates

• 2.55% overall retreatment rate in large prospective audits 7
• After retreatment, 98.4% achieve ≥20/40 UCVA and 63.5% achieve ≥20/20 UCVA 7
• 6.3% retreatment rate for both wavefront-optimized PRK and LASIK 1