My personal rule of thumb on this is 'the longer the better.' Two weeks is the absolute minimum for soft contact lenses and some will recommend longer for toric soft lenses. For hard and RGP contact lenses the down time is even longer. Two weeks is usually enough time for the corneal curvature to stabilize but if you want to be extra sure then ask your surgeon to repeat the keratometry, refraction and topography again after 3 or 4 weeks into the contact lens holiday. If all the measurements are stable then you're ready for surgery.
If you are having new floaters then you should see your ophthalmologist as soon as possible for a full dilated retinal exam. Floaters can be a symptom of retinal tear or detachment and thus should be diagnosed and treated quickly. Nearsightedness, which is the most common indication for laser vision correction, is also a common risk factor for floaters.
My rule of thumb is no laser vision correction surgery within 6 months of beginning pregnancy. I also recommend waiting 6 months after finishing breast feeding. As far as custom versus traditional treatments go, I prefer custom treatments in all patients who qualify for it. They are both great treatments but the customized ablation is likely the better option for those who are candidates for it.
For a thorough LASIK evaluation your eyes will be dilated with cyclopentolate at the initial consultation. The dilating effects of cyclopentolate can last for up to 24 hours and therefore may interfere with the LASIK procedure if it is planned for the following day. For this reason we typically schedule the consultation and the surgery at least 2 days apart.
According to my calculations you are looking at a residual stromal bed of about 360 microns in the right eye and about 380 microns in the left eye, which is well above our accepted standards for safety. That being said, your 470 micron cornea is significantly thinner than the average cornea and it is possible that one of your doctors saw other abnormalities (possibly on the topography test) that were concerning.
