10 Signs You Might Be a Good Candidate for SMILE Eye Surgery

While LASIK is the procedure many people think of when they are considering permanently correcting their vision, not everyone is a good candidate. People with certain eye conditions, like thin corneas or severe dry eye, often do not qualify for LASIK.

Fortunately, there are other procedures available that can give you clearer vision and total freedom from glasses and contacts. One of the newest, most innovative options is SMILE eye surgery.

Keep reading to learn more about SMILE and 10 signs that you might be a good candidate for SMILE eye surgery.

What is SMILE Eye Surgery?

SMILE stands for small incision lenticule extraction. It is a minimally invasive eye surgery that can correct nearsightedness and astigmatism.

During SMILE eye surgery, your ophthalmologist uses a precision femtosecond laser to access the cornea and create a thin disk of tissue called a lenticule. The lenticule reshapes the curvature of the cornea, allowing light to focus properly on the retina and correct vision.

The surgeon accesses the cornea and removes the lenticule through an incision on the surface of the eye. The incision required for SMILE eye surgery is tiny and disturbs less of the surrounding eye tissue than procedures like LASIK, minimizing side effects and shortening recovery times.

Most SMILE patients are able to resume their normal activities and return to work as soon as the day after their surgery. Often, patients experience noticeably improved vision within a day or two of the procedure.

Am I a Good Candidate for SMILE Eye Surgery?

If you’re interested in SMILE eye surgery as a way to permanently correct your vision, here are ten signs that you might be a good candidate:

1. You Have Nearsightedness or Astigmatism

Nearsightedness is a refractive error that occurs when the eye is too long or you have a misshapen cornea. This causes light to focus on the front of the retina rather than the center, blurring far-away images.

Astigmatism is when the cornea is shaped like a football rather than holding its typical spherical shape. Incoming light then hits multiple points on the retina, giving you blurry vision.

SMILE eye surgery can correct these refractive errors by changing the shape of the cornea to refract light onto the center of your retina. However, it’s important to note that SMILE cannot correct farsightedness.

If you are not a candidate for LASIK and are farsighted, you may be better suited for PRK.

2. You Have a Stable Prescription

Your prescription must not have changed for at least 12 months to be considered a good candidate for SMILE eye surgery. An unstable prescription can affect the long-lasting results of SMILE, as vision changes can undo your vision correction.

3. You Are 22 Years or Older

Hormonal changes during puberty can affect your vision and require frequent updates to your prescription. By age 22, most patients have stable vision, making them candidates for SMILE eye surgery.

4. Your Refractive Errors are Within the Range that SMILE Can Correct

SMILE eye surgery can sometimes correct more severe refractive errors than other procedures, but your prescription must fall within a specific range for you to be a candidate. SMILE can correct nearsightedness up to -10 diopters and up to 3 diopters of astigmatism.

If you have a more severe refractive error, you may be a better candidate for the EVO ICL.

5. You Have Thin Corneas

The LASIK procedure requires your eye surgeon to make a small flap in the cornea to access and reshape the tissue underneath. However, if your corneas are too thin, it may be unsafe to create this flap, disqualifying some patients from LASIK.

Because SMILE only involves making a small incision on the edge of the cornea, most patients with thin corneas can still safely undergo the procedure.

6. You Have Severe Dry Eye

If you have severe dry eye, the temporary damage to corneal nerves caused by other procedures like LASIK can worsen your symptoms and compromise eye health. The SMILE eye surgery procedure affects less of the surrounding tissue, minimizing damage to corneal nerves.

7. You Have Healthy Eyes

Good candidates for SMILE should have healthy eyes with no pre-existing eye conditions like glaucoma, cataracts, or diabetic retinopathy that could complicate recovery or affect the final results. Corneal health is especially important because the procedure involves removing corneal tissue.

8. You Play Contact Sports

The flap created during LASIK has the potential to become dislodged during an injury to the face, which could impair your vision and affect the results of your procedure.

If you play contact sports like boxing, you’re at a higher risk for these injuries and may be better suited for SMILE eye surgery, which does not involve a corneal flap.

9. You Have Realistic Expectations

Another sign that you are a good candidate for SMILE is that you have realistic expectations about the visual outcomes of the surgery. While most people enjoy crystal-clear vision for decades, there are risks with any procedure.

You may also still experience vision changes in the future from unrelated conditions like cataracts, age-related macular degeneration, or glaucoma.

10. You Want to Enjoy Visual Freedom

If you are ready to see clearly without relying on glasses or contact lenses, SMILE eye surgery could help you finally enjoy visual freedom. The procedure has impressive results, with most patients achieving sharper vision than ever before.

What Can Affect Candidacy for SMILE?

Like any vision correction surgery, SMILE is not suitable for everyone. Some issues that could affect your candidacy for the procedure include an unstable prescription, corneal scarring or abnormalities, a history of eye conditions, and certain underlying health conditions.

If you have been told you are not a good candidate for other vision correction surgeries like LASIK, ask your ophthalmologist about SMILE eye surgery. This advanced procedure can bring you vivid, high-definition vision and freedom from visual aids.

Do you want to find out whether you’re a good candidate for SMILE eye surgery? Schedule a consultation at Atlanta Vision Institute in Atlanta, GA, today!