LASIK and Halos: What to Expect

LASIK eye surgery involves reshaping your cornea with a laser. Once the procedure is finished and your eyes are allowed to heal naturally, your eyes will start to adjust to the new shape.

In this article, we’ll discuss why this procedure can lead to side effects like halos after the surgery. We’ll also discuss how long halos last, any long-term risks, and how to manage halos in your vision.

Why Do You Get Halos After LASIK Surgery?

While healing, fluid accumulates in the cornea, leading to swelling. This swelling causes common side effects like glares and halos. If the cornea heals unevenly, you can also experience halos.

Most people who have had LASIK are likely to experience glares and halos immediately after surgery. Sometimes, glares appear as starbursts (a dispersed glow of light from a source). Fortunately, haloes are temporary and have little to no effect on your well-being.

What are Halos and Glare?

Glares and halos come directly from a light source or reflect from a surface. Most people experience halos and glares when they stare straight at a light or shiny object. 

Glares appear as rings around bright light. They occur when excess light enters the eye. This affects your ability to see and often causes discomfort. 

Common types of glares include:

• Direct glare. Caused by light shining from a direct source such as a window located in your direct field of view.
• Indirect glare. When light reflects toward the eye from another surface within your visual field.
• Discomforting glare. When the amount of light entering your eye is more than your retina can handle. It causes uncomfortable sensations but does not affect vision.
• Disabling glare. When there’s excessively bright light entering your eyes. For example, looking directly at the sun. It may not cause discomfort but will affect your vision.

Halos appear as bright circles around light sources such as headlights or streetlights. This is common, especially in low-light conditions.

How Long Do Halos and Glare Last After LASIK? 

After LASIK surgery, glares and halos may persist for several weeks to a month or more, depending on the healing process. After the first week, you’ll notice an improvement in your refractive error. 

Expect all vision quality issues to be fully resolved after about 3 months. However, it’s normal to notice halos at night 3 months after your surgery. Talk to your doctor if the glares and halos start to seriously affect your vision.

What are the Long-Term Risks?

The primary long-term risks include overcorrection, undercorrection, or astigmatism (an irregularly shaped cornea). Undercorrection or overcorrection can cause blurry vision, halos, and glares in bright lights. 

To correct this, your doctor will recommend LASIK enhancement or LASIK touchup as long as your corneas are in good health. LASIK enhancement involves lifting the corneal flap and repeating the laser treatment. 

Surgeons do this by using an excimer laser before repositioning the flap. This procedure is quicker than the initial LASIK. It takes about 2 minutes to complete.

How to Manage Halos

Although halos are temporary, there are a few things you can do to manage them while your eyes are healing. First, follow your doctor’s post-op care instructions carefully. 

This includes using prescription eye drops as directed to reduce inflammation and promote healing. Eye drops can also help minimize halos.

Be mindful of nighttime activities and limit driving at night or in dimly lit areas until the halos subside. You can also start wearing anti-reflective lenses to reduce glare and improve comfort. Finally, if your halos persist or worsen contact your doctor immediately.

5 Recovery Tips for LASIK

Follow the recovery tips below for successful LASIK recovery:

1. Follow Up With Your Doctor

Your doctor will monitor the healing process during follow-up visits. Even if you feel fine after laser eye surgery, a routine checkup can help your doctor detect minor complications before they worsen.

Your first follow-up visit should happen within 24 to 48 hours after the surgery. Your doctor will advise you on the proper follow-up schedule after surgery. 

2. Guard Your Eyes

Your eyes may feel gritty or itchy after LASIK surgery. It’s important not to rub them, this can dislodge the healing corneal flap or introduce harmful bacteria.

Doctors recommend using artificial tears and lubricating eye drops to ease discomfort. You can also wear eye shields when you sleep to prevent yourself from unconsciously rubbing them. 

Sunglasses protect your eyes from excess light, dust, and debris, which may introduce germs to the healing flap. Avoid using contact lenses, which do not shield your eyes like glasses do.

3. Avoid Intense Activity

Activities such as contact sports and heavy lifting can cause pressure in your eyes and affect the healing flap. Even if you can see clearly, don’t strain your eyes until your flap fully recovers.

Doctors recommend staying away from such activities for about a month as you heal. When you resume intense activities, continue to seek your doctor’s advice and protect your eyes to prevent accidental injuries. 

4. Avoid Getting Water in Your Eyes

Bacteria and other infectious germs may contaminate water.7 As your corneal flap heals, any contact with contaminated water will cause an infection.

Try closing your eyes as you shower and avoid swimming in the river, lake, ocean, or pool until your corneal flap is fully healed.

5. Take Medications as Prescribed

After surgery, you’ll use eye medication to treat inflammation and prevent flap infections. 

Your doctor will prescribe painkillers, artificial tears, and other lubricating eye drops to help with dryness. You must use these medications as prescribed.

If you’re required to take the medication multiple times every day or every hour, do not skip a dose. Failure to administer them as indicated may result in significant harm or a prolonged recovery time.