NEW LASIK: Advancements and Breakthroughs

2007-03-08 10:33:40

( Health )



Thought to be a breakthrough in eye surgery years back, LASIK continues to propel researches to remove the potential risks, complications and side effects of the procedure.

LASIK or “laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis” is a painless refractive eye surgery that usually takes less than thirty minutes to perform. It involves reshaping the cornea to refract light in the lens. The procedure can be performed to treat myopia, hyperopia or astigmatism.

The new LASIK procedure involves two steps. First, after your eye is anesthetized and held open by a small instrument, the surgeon puts a ring over your eye for suction before an incision is made using a knife called microkeratome or intralase laser. Second, the flap created by the incision is folded back while an excimer laser removes tiny bits of tissue from your cornea to reshape it. With the reshaped cornea, light is refracted better into your eye resulting in better vision.

New LASIK research on actual LASIK procedures performed however show that using intralase laser for the incision results in better than 20/20 vision outcome. While it has already been theoretically determined that using laser is safer and results with less complications and side effects, the better than 20/20 vision was not foreseen.

Advancements concerning the accuracy of ablation or the removal of corneal tissue have also improved with the development of next generation LASIK. LASIK new technological advancments can now reduce and even eliminate problems with glare and haloes, which are the most common side effect of LASIK procedure.

The new advancements in LASIK technology has been specifically designed to tackle optical distortions that result in glare and poor nighttime vision. During the treatment, your corneal shape is calculated and extra laser pulses are added beyond the center portion of your cornea to compensate for the loss of laser energy at the periphery. This results in a more complete treatment of the outer edges of your cornea where problems with night vision originate.

Several LASIK eye center procedures already involve the use of the new LASIK technologies as LASIK continues to be the most popular eye surgery in the United States.


All rights Reserved © Tradenet Services srl
Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form.