Why It’s Best to Wait to Get LASIK If You Are Pregnant

Less than 1% of patients experience complications after undergoing LASIK laser eye surgery. As one of the safest elective surgical procedures available today, it’s no surprise that over 700,000 people undergo the vision correction procedure every year. 

So surely, having laser eye surgery while pregnant is okay then, right? Unfortunately not – but safety is only part of the concern.

In this article, we outline exactly why it is best to wait to get LASIK eye surgery if you are pregnant and all the reasons why. Read on to learn how pregnancy can affect your vision, breastfeeding and LASIK, and how long to wait to have vision correction surgery after giving birth. 

Safety for You and Your Fetus

Pregnancy is a special time in a woman’s life and an exciting time for her family. Pregnant women have to temporarily avoid certain things and make sacrifices to keep their baby healthy while it’s developing. What about elective surgeries? 

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, pregnant women should not have elective surgery. In fact, extra precautions are taken when a pregnant woman undergoes any necessary surgery, to reduce the risk to the fetus, premature labor, or dangerous blood clots for the mother. In addition, any medications prescribed during or after surgery can reach the fetus, through the placenta, which may be detrimental. 

Accuracy – How Pregnancy May Affect Your Vision 

During pregnancy, a woman’s body goes through many changes. This can even include fluctuations in vision. Without a stable vision correction prescription, the accuracy of corrective eye surgery, such as LASIK, can be undermined. 

Common hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy can affect the measurements of refractive errors such as myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism. When screening any patient for LASIK surgery, a stable vision prescription is a primary candidacy. 

For the full list of determining factors for the suitability of LASIK surgery, read the NeoVision LASIK: Who Is and Who Is Not a Candidate post.  

How Long After Pregnancy Can You Get LASIK?

While there may be some things that a woman can do within days of giving birth, elective surgery is not one of them. The body takes a while to reset after pregnancy, so the changes set into motion by the hormones that facilitated that miracle of birth do not vanish overnight. It is recommended that a woman waits for several months after delivery to undergo elective surgery like LASIK. 

Is LASIK Safe While Breastfeeding?

Those vision-affecting hormones that surged through the woman’s body during pregnancy, remain at high levels to enable milk production. So while breastfeeding, patients may still have vision fluctuations that can affect their candidacy for vision-correcting surgery. 

In addition, because anything a mother ingests, will be ingested by a breastfeeding baby, it is important to remain careful with any medications consumed post delivery. This would include any medications administered in conjunction with elective surgery, such as LASIK.  

When to Schedule Your LASIK Screening

If you’re pregnant now, you can schedule a screening for several months after your due date or after you plan to quit breastfeeding. Putting a date on the calendar will bring you one step closer to clear, carefree vision, and you’ll have yet another reason to appreciate it. Envision yourself holding that darling squirmy baby and not worrying about their cute, chubby hands grabbing your glasses.

At Neovision, our goal is to ensure the comfort of our patients throughout their entire vision correction journey. Our Union City team is eager to answer all of your questions during your free LASIK consultation! For additional information, please download our ABCs of LASIK Book here!