Corrective Eye Surgery
For the past quarter century, there has been tremendous progress made in surgical techniques, procedures, and tools to improve vision. People who had worn glasses their entire lives have been able to shed them forever with corrective eye surgery.
After this, came another corrective eye surgery. called Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK). This was the first successful laser procedure used in the 1990's to change the curvature of the cornea by removing tissue directly from the surface of the eye.
This type of procedure has been successful and is still used today, particularly in cases where the cornea is too thin for Lasik surgery. It is interesting, however, PRK as a corrective eye surgery, has recently been getting attention once again in recent years with studies revealing two interesting things. First, both PRK and Lasik produce similar results. Second, nerve regeneration on the surface of the eye appears to be faster with PRK than with Lasik.
Laser-Assisted in situ Keratomileusis (Lasik) is definitely the most common of all corrective eye surgeries today. It is very similar to PRK with the exception of a thin, hinged flap that is made in the surface of the eye, which is lifted and laser energy is put underneath. This acts to reshape the eye. The flap then functions as a bandage.
Lasik's main advantage is that there is very little discomfort after the procedure, and more importantly, vision is clear within hours.
There are different variations of Lasik corrective eye surgery, but these mostly have to do with how the flap is created:
- Lasek - In this procedure, a very thinly hinged flap is made in the thin outer covering of the eye and floated away from the surface using alcohol. Laser reshaping can then occur.
- Epi-Lasik – This is similar to Lasek, with the exception of a special cutting tool used to lift the flap, eliminating the possibility of any adverse reaction to the alcohol.
- Bladeless, Blade-Free, (All-Laser Lasik) - This involves the use of another laser to create the flap in Lasik in lieu of cutting.
- Wavefront Lasik or PRK – This procedure incorporates ultra-modern analysis, known as wavefront, and can measure precisely how light travels through the eye. When used in corrective eye surgeries, excimer lasers, or exciplex lasers are used. These have built-in wavefront analysis and can detect and automatically adjust for slight vision errors when laser energy is being administered in reshaping the cornea. Studies also suggest that wavefront-guided Lasik diminish the risk of night glare.
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