Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 18, 2026
Comparison of Agreement and Accuracy using Binocular Wavefront Optometer with Autorefractor and Phoropter
Published on: September 16, 2025
Patient-reported outcomes 5 years after laser in situ keratomileusis
Steven C Schallhorn1, Jan A Venter1, David Teenan1
1From the Departments of Ophthalmology, University of California (S.C. Schallhorn), San Francisco, and University of Southern California (S.C. Schallhorn, J.M. Schallhorn), Los Angeles, California, USA; Optical Express (S.C. Schallhorn, Venter, Teenan, Hannan, Hettinger, Pelouskova), Glasgow, Scotland.
Purpose:
To assess vision-related, quality-of-life outcomes 5 years after laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) and determine factors predictive of patient satisfaction.
Setting:
Optical Express, Glasgow, Scotland.
Design:
Retrospective case series.
Methods:
Data from patients who had attended a clinical examination 5 years after LASIK were analyzed. All treatments were performed using the Visx Star S4 IR excimer laser. Patient-reported satisfaction, the effect of eyesight on various activities, visual phenomena, and ocular discomfort were evaluated 5 years postoperatively. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to determine factors affecting patient satisfaction.
Results:
The study comprised 2530 patients (4937 eyes) who had LASIK. The mean age at the time of surgery was 42.4 years ± 12.5 (SD), and the preoperative manifest spherical equivalent ranged from -11.0 diopters (D) to +4.88 D. Five years postoperatively, 79.3% of eyes were within ±0.50 D of emmetropia and 77.7% of eyes achieved monocular uncorrected distance visual acuity (UDVA) and 90.6% of eyes achieved binocular UDVA of 20/20 or better. Of the patients, 91.0% said they were satisfied with their vision and 94.9% did not wear distance correction. Less than 2.0% of patients noticed visual phenomena, even with spectacle correction. Major predictors of patient satisfaction 5 years postoperatively were postoperative binocular UDVA (37.6% variance explained by regression model), visual phenomena (relative contribution of 15.0%), preoperative and postoperative sphere and their interactions (11.6%), and eyesight-related difficulties with various activities such as night driving, outdoor activities, and reading (10.2%).
Conclusion:
Patient-reported quality-of-life and satisfaction rates remained high 5 years after LASIK. Uncorrected vision was the strongest predictor of satisfaction.
Financial Disclosure:
Dr. S.C. Schallhorn is a consultant to Abbott Medical Optics, Inc., Zeiss Meditec AG, and Autofocus Inc. and a global medical director for Optical Express. No other author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned.
