Refractive eye surgery is one of the most common procedures that can improve eye vision or refractive errors or eliminate the need for eyeglasses or contact lenses. In people who have a clear vision, the light rays will be focused on the retina, or in other words, the light will become refracted. Refractive errors in the eye can create vision problems because the cornea – which is a transparent part in the front of the eye- is not shaped correctly. As a result, when the light travels into the eye, it cannot be focused on the retina, and that causes the images to be blurred. Generally, refractive errors can be categorized into four types:

• Nearsightedness (myopia): This is a refractive error that can happen to healthy people, and it can occur in both adults and children. In this condition, objects that are closer to the eye are clear; however, distant objects tend to be blurred. The disorder is one of the most prevalent in people with eye problems.
• Farsightedness (hyperopia): Hyperopia is another refractive error in which distant objects look clear, but close objects are blurry.  Hyperopia is different in each people, and objects at any distance irrespective of their proximity seem to be blurry.
• Astigmatism: Light rays cannot be refracted if cornea or lens is not evenly curved in all direction which lead to a blurry or disordered vision. Doctors believe that the development of astigmatism can be inherited or can get damaged during an eye injury or surgery.
• Presbyopia: This refractive error is also known as the aging eye in which a person gradually loses its ability to see objects clearly. When people reach 40, they start to realize this disorder while they are reading or looking at objects. Refractive eye surgery is one of the possible ways to correct presbyopia. Also, if it is left untreated, it can lead to headaches.

Generally speaking, there is no universally accepted method to fix refractive errors. The ophthalmologist should decide the most appropriate option for treatment after a complete examination of the eye. Subsequently, the most widely used procedures for refractive errors that have proved successful will be explained below:

LASIK eye surgery: This is one of the most used laser refractive surgery to treat vision problems. The procedure can be completed in less than an hour. To numb the eye, the doctor will instill some drops into the eye, and with the help of an instrument makes the eyelid to remain open. Afterward, the doctor will make a small cut in the eye in order to remove a flap from the front of the eye. Then, using the programmed laser, the surgeon will remove some parts of the corneal tissue to reshape the corona. In the end, the doctor will put the flap in its original place, and it will heal gradually without any stitches.

The possible complication with LASIK surgery: 

• Dry eyes
• Double vision.
• Undercorrections (when the surgeon removes an inadequate amount of tissue).
• Overcorrections (When the laser removes too much tissue form the eye).
• Astigmatism (This can happen with uneven tissue removal).

Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK): This is another refractive eye surgery that uses the same laser therapy as LASIK to correct or reshape the cornea. The main difference of PRK with LASIK surgery is that laser beams will be administered on the surface of the cornea, instead of the beneath of corneal flap.

• PRK surgery can successfully cure nearsightedness. 
• In patients with thinner corneal layer, PRK is preferable to LASIK surgery. 
• Technically speaking, PRK uses the same laser treatment, and it is more comfortable.

• There could be some mild irritation or watering following the surgery. 
• Unlike LASIK surgery, the recovery of vision takes a little bit much longer, usually about three months.

• Corneal haze (the cornea’s appearance becomes opaque like).
• Partial loss of the treatment effect.
• The light gets scattered when it enters the eye, which is followed by glare symptoms.

Eye treatments in Iran are one of the most performed surgeries that can correct various refractive eye errors. Besides, Iran benefits from various sub-specialty hospitals that offer a wide range of treatments with the most advanced laser equipment and diagnostic devices that enable the doctors to provide the right choice of treatments. This fact has become one of the critical factors in which foreign patients decide to travel to Iran for their desired therapy, including ophthalmic treatment. Moreover, Iranian are known as hospitable, welcoming, and compassionate people, and tourists who have visited Iran mentioned they like this country and its people much more than they expected. All of these qualities can make patients’ medical travel to Iran a memorable experience.