5 Key Takeaways

• 1

  The review included 4 studies with 2,141 participants: 1,275 LASIK recipients and 866 contact lens users.

• 2

  Quality-of-life results favored LASIK under a common-effect model, but the random-effects estimate was smaller and nonsignificant amid substantial heterogeneity.

• 3

  Patient satisfaction was reported by 88% of LASIK patients and 54% of contact lens users; 97% of participants who switched to LASIK preferred it.

• 4

  In one large study, adverse events occurred in 9.5% of LASIK patients and 19.9% of contact lens users, while dry eye was reported in both groups.

• 5

  The authors rated the evidence low to moderate and called for larger prospective studies with standardized quality-of-life measures and longer follow-up.