Who is eligible for SMILE Pro?
You may be considered if you are an adult with a stable prescription, short-sightedness or astigmatism within the range the platform and surgeon treat, a cornea of adequate thickness and normal shape, and a healthy ocular surface. Only a full ophthalmic assessment can determine whether that applies to you.
Quick answer
You may be considered if you are an adult with a stable prescription, short-sightedness or astigmatism within the range the platform and surgeon treat, a cornea of adequate thickness and normal shape, and a healthy ocular surface. Only a full ophthalmic assessment can determine whether that applies to you.
A general answer about SMILE Pro, not advice about your own eyes. Only an ophthalmologist who has examined you can answer it for your case.
- Topic
- Eligibility & assessment
- Answer length
- Quick answer plus detail
- Sourced
- Yes
In more detail
Factors that commonly rule refractive surgery out include an unstable prescription, keratoconus or suspicious corneal topography, significant dry eye, active eye disease, certain autoimmune conditions, and pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Eligibility is not a yes-or-no test that produces the same answer everywhere. Different surgeons have different thresholds, and some are willing to operate in marginal cases where others are not. You are entitled to ask about that.
Related guides
Subjects this question touches
The pages that answer the subject behind the question, rather than the question itself.
- Procedure SMILE Pro
- Comparison SMILE Pro vs LASIK
- Place SMILE in Dubai
- Procedure SMILE
- Comparison LASIK vs SMILE
It describes what is generally true. Whether it applies to your eyes depends on measurements taken during an examination, and two people asking the same question can receive different answers. Read the answer as a starting point for the conversation, not as its conclusion.
People also ask
The closest subjects to this question, from both question banks.
- How stable does my prescription need to be? Eligibility & assessment
- Can SMILE Pro correct short-sightedness (myopia)? Eligibility & assessment
- Can SMILE Pro correct astigmatism? Eligibility & assessment
- Can SMILE Pro correct long-sightedness (hyperopia)? Eligibility & assessment
- Is there an age limit for SMILE Pro? Eligibility & assessment
- Can I have SMILE Pro if I have dry eyes? Eligibility & assessment
More SMILE Pro questions
Sources & further reading
We prefer primary sources. Where a claim comes from a manufacturer, a single study or a regulator, it is labelled as such below.
- Small Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE)
A continuously updated clinical reference chapter covering SMILE indications, technique, outcomes and complications, written for clinicians.
Used for How the lenticule is created and removed; Indications and contraindications; Complication categories; Corneal biomechanics compared with flap-based surgery.
Link checked 22 September 2026