LASIK surgery is performed with a laser programmed to remove a defined amount of tissue from a part of your eye called the cornea.

To begin, your doctor uses a special blade — or laser — to cut a flap on the top layer of your cornea, about the size of a contact lens. The flap allows access to the deeper layers of your eye.

The laser is used again to flatten certain tissue or to make the tissue steeper, depending on your needs for corrected vision. Finally, the flap is folded back into place and will heal on its own.