When can I use screens after LASIK?

General information about typical recovery, not medical advice. Every eye and every surgery is different, and your surgeon's instructions override anything on this page. Read our full disclaimer.

Short answer

Most people are back on screens within a day or two, in short sessions. The limit is usually dryness and eye strain, not a rule about damage.

No authoritative source sets a hard screen-time limit after LASIK. The FDA's guidance is broader: expect not to see clearly right away, plan to take a few days to recover, and plan on taking a few days off from work until the early symptoms subside. Vision is hazy or blurry at first and improves considerably within the first few days, so screens are usually uncomfortable rather than forbidden.

The reason screens feel rough early is dryness. StatPearls reports dry eye in roughly 85 to 98 percent of patients one week after LASIK, because the surgery interrupts the tear reflex when corneal nerves are cut, with about 60 percent still affected at one month. People blink much less while staring at a screen, which makes an already dry eye worse and makes vision blur between blinks.

A practical approach that fits the published guidance: rest the eyes on surgery day, then start with short sessions and build up. Use the artificial tears the FDA says you may be advised to use to help lubricate the eye. Take frequent breaks and blink deliberately. Turn brightness down if you are light sensitive, which the FDA lists as a normal early symptom. If screen work is making vision worse rather than just tiring, tell your surgeon.

When	Typical guidance
Surgery day	Rest the eyes. Vision is hazy or blurry and most people nap.
Day 1 to 3	Short screen sessions with frequent breaks and artificial tears.
First week	The FDA says plan on a few days off work until early symptoms subside.
First 1 to 3 months	Dryness with long screen sessions is common. Keep tears handy.

Call your surgeon now if you notice any of these

Severe eye pain, or pain that gets worse instead of better, at any point after surgery
Vision or any other symptom that is getting worse instead of better, rather than improving over the first days
Sudden decrease or sudden loss of vision in either eye
Any new or unusual symptom at any point after surgery, which the FDA says could signal a problem that may lead to loss of vision if not treated early enough
Signs the corneal flap may have moved, such as a sudden sharp foreign body or scratching sensation, sudden blurring, tearing, and light sensitivity, especially after rubbing, bumping, or being hit in the eye. The FDA warns that rubbing the eye could dislodge the flap, and StatPearls lists flap dislodgement among corneal flap complications reported in about 0.1 to 4 percent of patients
Signs of diffuse lamellar keratitis, a sterile inflammation in the layer under the flap, which StatPearls says usually appears one to two days after surgery in as many as 1 in 50 cases and shows up as blurriness and a foreign body sensation. It typically resolves with appropriate steroid treatment after about a week, but it needs the surgeon to see it and change your drops
Signs of infection, such as increasing redness, discharge, worsening light sensitivity, and dropping vision. StatPearls reports infectious keratitis in less than 0.1 percent of patients, with atypical mycobacteria typically appearing one to two weeks after surgery
Any eye injury or blunt trauma to the operated eye, at any time after LASIK, because the flap interface never regains full corneal strength
New floaters, flashes of light, or a curtain or shadow across part of your vision. StatPearls lists retinal detachment, vitreous hemorrhage, and posterior vitreous detachment among rare complications occurring in less than 0.1 percent of patients

These warning signs after LASIK can point to problems that need same-day care. Do not wait for your next scheduled visit. If you cannot reach your surgeon's office, use their on-call line, or go to an emergency room.

Sources: U.S. Food and Drug Administration; StatPearls Publishing, NCBI Bookshelf; Journal of Refractive Surgery

Sources

What should I expect before, during, and after surgery? U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed 2026-08-25.
LASIK Surgery Checklist U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed 2026-08-25.
Laser In Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK) StatPearls Publishing, NCBI Bookshelf. Accessed 2026-08-25.

When can I use screens after LASIK?

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