Quality Of Life In Myopia: Lasik Vs. Contact Lenses
Published 2026 - 44th Congress of the ESCRS
Reference: PP10.06 | Type: Free paper | DOI: 10.82333/cxj0-t937
Authors: Dr Maisara Shehab 1 , Dr Ziad W. Elmezayen 2 , Dr Shawkat Shawkat 3 , Dr Shahd Mahmoud 1 , Dr Farah Afr 1 , Dr Marah Maysara Khayyal 1 , Dr Khaled Moghib 1 , Dr Mayar Hussam Rehan 1 , Dr Albraa Ashraf Hamad 1 , Dr Hashem Abu Serhan* 4
1Department of Ophthalmology,Cairo University,Cairo,Egypt, 2Department of Ophthalmology,Kafr Elsheikh University,Kafr Elsheikh,Egypt, 3Department of Ophthalmology,Benha University,Benha,Egypt, 4Department of Ophthalmology,Hamad Medical Corporation,Doha,Qatar
Purpose
To compare the quality of life of myopic people who use contact lens with people who had a laser‐assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) surgery.
Setting
This systematic review aims to bridge these knowledge gaps by evaluating the effects of LASIK versus contact lenses on vision-related quality of life, patient satisfaction, and dry eye disease.
Methods
Our protocol was registered prospectively on PROSPERO (CRD42025636623). A comprehensive literature search was conducted across four electronic databases [Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and the Cochrane Library] to find eligible articles. The primary outcome assessed was quality of life, while the secondary outcomes included the prevalence of dry eyes and patient satisfaction. A meta-analysis was conducted using R statistical software (version 2024.04.2 Build 764) and the ‘meta' package (version 7.0-0). The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale.
Results
Of 1,806 initial records, four studies met inclusion criteria, enrolling 2,141 participants were included in our meta-analysis. Meta-analysis revealed moderate improvement in quality of life for LASIK users (SMD = 0.45; p < 0.0001), while patient satisfaction was notably higher in the LASIK group (88% vs. 54% for contact lenses). Complication rates were lower in LASIK patients (6.7% vs. 19.9% for contact lenses), although LASIK was associated with a higher incidence of acute dry eye symptoms.
Conclusions
In conclusion, this meta-analysis demonstrated that LASIK significantly enhances quality of life compared to contact lens use and yields markedly higher patient satisfaction. Moreover, LASIK was associated with lower overall complication rates, though it carried a greater risk of acute dry eye symptoms.