Wondering what life would be like free of glasses or contact lenses? Then you owe it to yourself to consider LASIK.
The criteria for the ideal LASIK patient are someone who is over 18 years of age and has healthy corneas with a relatively stable prescription. People with certain medical conditions or pregnant and nursing women may not be good candidates. Candidates should also have a good understanding of the risks and rewards from LASIK. The best way to find out if you are a good candidate is to arrange a LASIK evaluation. You will know in minutes whether this procedure is right for you.
There are several different kinds of Laser Eye Surgery. Ozog Eye Care offers the two types described below.
PRK
This stands for Photorefractive Keratectomy, and used to be the most popular refractive surgery prior to the advent of LASIK. PRK uses an excimer laser to treat many types of refractive errors, such as nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia) and astigmatism. It is still the procedure of choice for certain patients.
PRK differs most from LASIK during the first step of the procedure. After applying anesthetic drops, the doctor will first remove the thin protective layer of tissue that covers the cornea, called the epithelium. Next, an excimer laser applies a cool beam of light, which gently reshapes the surface of the cornea allowing images to be more sharply focused by the retina, correcting the refractive error. Pain during surgery is non-existent, however, there may be some discomfort during the healing process. Many patients achieve 20/20 vision with PRK.
ADVANTAGES:
- A long history of effective results
- Eliminates flap-related complications
- Works better for patients with thin, irregular or scarred corneas
- Is preferred for patients with large pupils
LASIK
This procedure is similar to PRK and uses an excimer laser to correct refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. Today, LASIK is the most popular form of laser eye surgery.
Unlike in PRK, during LASIK, the doctor will create a small protective flap of corneal tissue that is gently lifted back. Next, the excimer laser reshapes the cornea to correct the refractive error. Finally, the protective flap is replaced and is allowed to heal.
ADVANTAGES:
- Optimum visual recovery is achieved sooner.
- Lower post-operative discomfort
- Fewer post-operative visits required
- Can correct a wider range of refractive errors
- Recovery time is typically shorter
Advanced CustomVue™ With Iris Registration
This particular procedure provides the greatest degree of individualization and customization to get the results you want. It can be used for nearsightedness, farsightedness and mixed astigmatism.
After an exam and evaluation, the doctor will use high-tech scanning equipment to create a Wavescan map of your eyes. This information gets transferred digitally directly to the VISX STAR S4 Laser. Then CustomVue LASIK gently reshapes the cornea with the cool laser beam by removing microscopic amounts of tissue and creating a new curvature. The procedure typically takes only seconds and the majority of patients feel no discomfort. Many patients notice immediate results, with vision improving in the days following the procedure.
ADVANTAGES:
- First fully automated method of aligning and registering wavefront corrections
- Measures eye imperfections 25 times more precisely than standard methods
- Creates a detailed map of the eye as unique as a fingerprint
- Precise digital information is transferred directly to laser
- Non-contact method provides greater alignment accuracy