What Is Laser Eye Surgery

Laser eye surgery is a procedure with lasers to reshape the cornea in the eye and change its focusing power. Many people have had laser eye surgery and no longer need contact lenses or glasses. The operation will be performed when the patient is awake and drops are used to numb the eyes. As long as the surgery goes well, the results should be permanent, although normal age-related eye deterioration might occur later in life. Laser eye surgery can be used to treat short sight, long sight and astigmatism.

Who Can Benefit from Laser Eye Surgery?

Laser eye surgery is not suitable for everyone. People with ongoing medical conditions such as diabetes or glaucoma are not good laser eye surgery candidates for example. Also, anyone suffering from an autoimmune disease, uncontrolled vascular disease or some types of eye diseases involving the retina or cornea which laser eye surgery could make worse should not opt for this type of surgery. Pregnant women should not have laser eye surgery, because the eye refraction can change during pregnancy.

Types of Laser Eye Surgery

There are various types of laser eye surgery. One of the most common is LASIK, which stands for laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis. With this procedure, a microkeratome metal blade is used to cut the cornea flap and an excimer laser is used to reshape the eye. The flap is replaced directly after the laser treatment. This is painless and vision is usually corrected immediately although things might look blurry for a day or so.

PRK, or photorefractive keratectomy, is another type of laser eye surgery. The outer layer of the cornea is manually scraped away in PRK and the excimer laser reshapes the tissues on the surface of the cornea. The outer layer grows back by itself. PRK is an option for people with thin corneas. The PRK laser eye surgery can be a bit uncomfortable and the recovery time is longer than with LASIK.

LASEK is similar in some ways to LASIK and is often performed on patients who do not fit the requirements for LASIK surgery. A 20% alcohol solution is used in LASEK to loosen the epithelium, or outer layer of the cornea, and it is peeled back with a fine blade called a trephine to expose the cornea. The excimer laser is applied to the surface of the corner. After the surgery the epithelium is replaced and a bandage contact lens is worn to promote healing.

In Epi-LASEK surgery, a separator is used to preserve a living layer of epithelium, or the outer cornea. This layer is replaced after the laser treatment. Epi-LASEK surgery is not too uncomfortable and the eyes should heal quickly.

Which Laser Eye Surgery is Best?

Which laser eye surgery to choose depends on your doctor’s recommendations. There are different types of surgery to suit different needs. The best laser eye surgery for one person might be the worst choice for another.

PRK was developed before LASIK surgery and there have been advancements to LASIK technology, such as Wavefront technology. This creates a detailed eye map so the surgeon can be more precise. LASEK has various advantages too, such as the fact that there will be no problems cutting and reattaching a flap in the eye, since the process is different. A disadvantage of LASEK is that many people do not have optimum vision until a couple of weeks after the treatment. Epi-LASIK is the newest laser eye surgery process.

To find out which laser eye surgery is the most suitable for you, it is best to consult a doctor or get a recommendation from your own eye surgeon.

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