Q: I am 21 years old engineering student. I have recently cracked a job interview and am waiting for the call letter to join. My eye power is -7.5 for the right eye and -5.25 for the left eye. Can I go for lasik surgery? Will it affect my career? I have heard that some government organisations do not recruit candidates who underwent lasik surgery. Further, will working on computer increase my eye power?

A:You can certainly undergo lasik surgery with the eye power you have mentioned. But initially you would require undergoing certain pre-evaluation tests so as to examine the corneal thickness and other clinical details in order to check the suitability of the eyes before the procedure. The surgery can be performed the very next day of the pre-evaluation check up. The best procedure for you can be advised only after a detailed examination of your eyes. Lasik Surgery will not affect your career opportunities. Even the branches of the U.S. military and NASA have recently approved lasik for their servicemen. But, regarding government agencies in India, you have to find out in particular, which organizations that are you applying for restrain candidates who underwent lasik surgery. Lasik uses the Intralase Method, which is a 100% blade free approach. Physicians are inspired by its precision, safety, and practice-enhancing advantages. Patients are inspired by the ability to have a blade-free procedure. So, it is absolutely safe. Working on Computer will not increase your eye power. Computers and watching TV does not do any damage to the eyes. Working on computers for long hours causes fatigue. While looking at the screen our blinking becomes less, leading to dryness. So while working on computer, you should take regular breaks. This will help to spread the tear film properly and relax the eye muscle. In addition, you should keep computer monitor at your eye-level at an arms length from you. This reduces the neck strain. The screen illumination should be equal to the room illumination. Night Vision will not be affected by lasik and it has no relation to developing cataract. Regarding Problem of Dry Eyes - you may feel some dryness of the eyes but this will not persist for long time and will subside soon after the surgery. Regarding the use of specs or lenses after surgery, it can only be judged after detailed examination of your eyes. But clinical studies results showed that 1 year after treatment 98% of mild to moderate near-sighted patients could see 20/20 or better without glasses. Four times as many mild to moderate near-sighted patients were very satisfied with their night vision after treatment compared to their night vision before treatment with glasses or contacts.