What causes glare and halos and can they be treated?

If you are looking for a laser eye clinic in London, then the London Vision Clinic should be on your shortlist.  

That may seem like a strong statement, but the London Vision Clinic emphasises that, in expert hands, laser eye surgery can be an extremely safe, life enhancing experience. More than 100,000 laser eye surgery procedures will be done in the UK this year. Read the guide to Laser Eye Surgery to help make the right choice for your eyesight.

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Few people develop side effects from laser eye surgery. Of those who do, problems such as glare and halos, affecting night vision, are among the most common. There are several reasons.

If the shape of your eye has not been changed enough during your first procedure, you may still be slightly short or long-sighted, and/or still have a minor astigmatism. A follow-up procedure or wearing glasses at night can help.

The size of your pupils can be another cause of glare and halos. If a patient’s pupils dilate (open) beyond the area of the cornea that has been treated during laser eye surgery, this can cause glare and halos in low light conditions. This can be prevented by measuring your dilated pupil size before surgery. The surgeon can determine whether or not they can effectively treat a large enough area of your cornea with the laser. If this is not possible then you would not be considered a suitable candidate for surgery.

If you do have glare and halos at night following surgery because of your pupil size, there are a few techniques that can help. Some patients find that, when driving, keeping the overhead light on inside their car stops their pupils dilating so much that it affects their vision. Some people find medicated eye drops that stop their pupil from dilating fully alleviate the problem.

Finally, glare and halos can be caused if the area of your cornea treated by the laser is off to one side (off-centred ablation). Choosing a properly-qualified and experienced surgeon can help to minimise the risk of this serious complication. This is especially important since to date there is no entirely satisfactory solution available. Using Wavefront technology may significantly reduce the risk of glare, haloes and night vision difficulties.