Careful..if you have astigmatism the limits are much stricter. When I received my PRK waiver in 2007 the limits were 3.5 diopters per eye with astigmatism present.
i've had a difficult time trying to find info that doesn't contradict other info i've found... deez, was that limit +/- 3.5 or just -3.5? also, does can anyone give an estimate as to roughly how often they revise the limits?
ok for anyone who is still wondering, the pre op refractive limits are definitely -8 to +3. that's confirmed by some one from NOMI he said that changes could be made but he doesn't see any occurring in the near future, though i don't know what his definition of near future is
I'm pretty sure your oso is wrong on this one... the waiver guide says nothing about what your pre op vision was (20/XX), it only talks about pre op refraction. your prescription is fine so assuming all goes well you should get it waivered. as far as your timeline, i'm not 100% sure about what to do before when. i only know that you're right about the 6 month thing and getting a waiver/starting training
I am in the middle of applying for a waiver for my LASEK surgery and i'll tell you right now, if that is in fact what he told you then he is wrong. Check out this link.. http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/navme...Pages/AeromedicalReferenceandWaiverGuide.aspx and look at the Ophthalmology Waiver guide. You will be able to apply for a waiver 3 months post op since your myopia is less than -6.00.
This may simply be a difference in terminology. Technically PRK is disqualifying, meaning in order to get a flight/pilot slot after having,you need a waiver. It is disqualifying but waiverable, provided you meet the refractive limits that are in the NAMI waiver guide.
Thanks for the replies! Reassures me even more, because I was devasted for about a split second. I called another OSO office in TX today, and they told me different that my local OSO office's Gunnery Sgt. originally told me; that it does not matter the pre-op vision. They said go ahead and get the surgery. So in two weeks I plan on getting it still. Now I'm not sure what's next exactly. Let the research begin! Thanks again!!
I have a question that goes along with the initial discussion. For my pre-op numbers, will they go off of my MEPS evaluation numbers, or off of the numbers the civilan laser surgery center recorded?
How much of it is waiverable? Im an active duty PO1 who had PRK at Keesler AFB. Unfortunately my eyes were -8.50. I went into boot camp at -7.75 maybe the eye doc was being friendly and didnt want to process me out Does this mean Im excluded from any commissioning source now?
if you go by the book yes, unrestricted line max is 6.00 and RL and Staff are 8.00 and this specifically says included pre surgery refractive error, the ONLY one I have seen waivered is a person that went Nuke. I will say that the only one that can give you a for sure yes or no is the doc at N3M who would do the waiver, but for URL you are/were quite a bit out.
NavyOffRec, you said URL max is 6.00. So what is the waiver guide referring to by this? : 3. SNA applicants: pre-operative refractive error must not exceed -8.00 to + 3.00 (SE) and 3.00 diopters of cylinder, with no more than 3.50D of anisometropia
There is the manual for those already in (NAMI) and the manual for those trying to get in N3M, they do not have to be the same and are not, N3M is the gatekeeper and if you get by them then they will defer to NAMI for the final upcheck. For entry into a program leading to a commission = OCS, for commission = already in the USN in some capacity. http://www.brooksidepress.org/Products/ManMed/Changes/manmed change 126.pdf page 15-29 article 15-36 section 2 part b
Ah bummer...It's starting to look like the end of the road for me then. I'm very close to that -8 limit but I always held on to the hope that I'd be able to sneak by right before my eyes went over. Now it turns out that NFO isn't in my cards either? This sucks, but I'll always keep that glimmer of hope inside. Besides I'm 3.5 years away from finishing school and who knows, maybe things have changed by then. In the meantime I'll keep checking the site for anything new.. As always thanks for your help NavyOffRec.
