LASIK SURGERY

Establish clear and sharp vision

LASIK is a refractive surgical procedure intended to reduce a person’s dependency on glasses or contact lenses.

LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis and is a procedure permanently changing the shape of the cornea, the clear covering of the front of the eye, using a laser.

Who is a candidate for Refractive Surgery?


The best candidates for refractive surgery are those who:

  • Are 18 years of age or older
  • Have a stable prescription for at least 12 months
  • Have a disease free cornea and otherwise healthy eye
  • Have a small to high amount of nearsightedness or astigmatism or a small amount of farsightedness
  • Are not currently pregnant, planning to become pregnant within the next six months or nursing for at least the past two months

NOTE: The success of refractive surgery will vary depending on the amount of nearsightedness, farsightedness, general health of the eye and the age of the patient. There is no upper age limit. However, as part of the natural aging process, the eye tends to become presbyopic (lose the ability to focus up close). Therefore, reading glasses will become necessary sometime after the age of 40.

Types of surgery with LASIK:


Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK)

PRK has been performed since 1986. Prior to LASIK, PRK was the most commonly performed Laser vision correction procedure. PRK differs from LASIK, as no flap is created during the procedure. PRK may be more suitable for patients with thin-corneas, corneal issues, dry eye and large pupils. For PRK laser correction procedure, no scalpels are used and no incisions are made.To accomplish the reshaping of the eye, the surgeon first removes the protective surface (epithelium) from the cornea. The epithelium regenerates itself, typically, in three to five days. Next, your surgeon will proceed by applying computer controlled pulses of laser lights to reshape the curvature of the eye, all while the deeper cell layers remain unaffected. Immediately following the procedure, a bandage contact lens is placed on the cornea for protection.

Since only a thin layer, about as slender as a human hair is removed, the cornea maintains most of its original strength.

Custom Laser Vision Correction (LVC)

While conventional LASIK has been revolutionary in vision correction, Custom LVC is an improved procedure that permits your surgeon to further customize the LASIK procedure to your individual eye. This can result in clearer and sharper vision, better than what can be corrected with the most advanced glasses or contact lenses. Rather than treating a person’s “prescription,” Custom LVC measures and treats all the imperfections in the individual visual system. A custom scan of the eye’s entire visual system (wavescan) is taken and download info the laser for correction creating a truly “custom” laser treatment.

Intralase

In the LASIK and Custom LVC procedures, a flap of corneal tissue must be created and then folded back. The cornea is the transparent dome-like structure that covers the iris and pupil of your eye. In interlase, a laser is used to create the corneal flap rather than a mechanical device. The advance allows the surgeon to make thinner, more consistent flaps, therefore customizing the corneal flap for each patient.

You can learn more about LASIK surgery from the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

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