Aspiring Astronauts May Now Undergo LASIK

Aspiring astronauts who have undergone "all laser" LASIK can now be considered for NASA's space program because of a recent policy change.

Previously, LASIK was considered unsafe for astronauts in extreme conditions such as liftoff because of a hinged flap created on the eye's surface. After the cornea is reshaped by an excimer laser, the flap is replaced as a type of natural bandage.

Healing times are much faster because of the flap used with LASIK. But NASA officials feared that even a healed flap could become dislodged under extreme conditions.

Now, NASA officials say that modern wavefront-guided LASIK using flaps created by a special laser (femtosecond) known as IntraLase has a safety profile good enough to clear the vision correction procedure for astronauts.