Though excimer lasers were invented in the 1970s and adapted for use in eye surgeries in the 1980s, there is a long history of vision correction in human culture. Eye glasses have been seen in artifacts from 13th century Italy. Even contact lenses were recorded as early as 1888. However, following tests in the early 1990s, photorefractive keratectomy, or PRK, was approved by the FDA in the United States in 1995. Meanwhile, two European doctors were already working on enhancing this procedure to allow for less discomfort and a faster recovery. Using a blade to cut a micro-thin flap in the cornea, using a laser on the tissue underneath, and then replacing the flap, the first surgery that we now call LASIK was approved in the United States in 1999.

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