Dailies Contact Lenses

Will laser eye surgery put the glasses industry out of business?

Now that more and more people getting laser eye surgery, leaving the glasses they used to wear behind for good, do you think the glasses business will essentially go out of business?

Public Comments

1. No, not everyone is a good candidate for laser eye surgery. There will always be those of us who need contacts or glasses.
2. I've been hearing that literally since before I graduated from optometry school in 2000. and I'm busier than EVER. why is that? a few reasons: 1) LASIK doesn't do all Rx's. many, many, many (most?) people THINK it does, but it does not. LASIK is very, very good at eliminating myopia & astigmatism. well thats good! thats half of all refractive errors! but only half. all the presbyopes & hyperopes are out of luck. oh! and so are myopes over -9.00 or so...they can't have LASIK, either. so thats another 5% or so less as well. 2) LASIK is expensive, the economy is bad and insurance doesn't pay. LASIK will never be super-cheap b/c the training is significant, the equipment is expensive and the lawyers are gonna sue your pants off if you foul it up, so the malpractice insurance is high 3) demand is low. all the people who were really, really interested in LASIK already got it. LASIK demand is literally at an all time low right now. you'd think that would drive the price down...but see #2. so...no. glasses will always be around, and LASIK is not going to make any more of a dent in the number of people with refractive error than it already has. people thought we'd all have flying cars by now too...
3. There is room for both. Since Lasik has been available eyeglass and contact lens sales continue to grow. Not everyone wants to go under the knife if they don't have too.
4. Plus, just to add to the excellent comments above , there are a few million people every year who are getting into their 40's and require reading glasses also, which can't be helped with Lasik, plus all those who already HAD Lasik will need reading glasses also when then hit their 40's And, there are millions more who just require minor corrections for TV or driving, and certainly not worth getting surgery for. So, glasses and contacts will be around for a long time.
5. and Lastly... Even if everyone has perfect vision... all we need is a Johnny Depp, or a Lady Gaga to wear a cool pair of glasses.... then everyone (even with perfect vision) will want to have a pair of glasses made (with ZERO power lenses)... just to look cool!!!... :)
6. I don't think so because there are people like me who just don't think it is worth going through that big of a risk to get their eyes fixed. I'm happy with wearing glasses so long as they help me see better.