LASIK for Correcting Vision
The ordinary solution for nearsightedness or farsightedness has traditionally been eyeglasses.
Some people opt for contact lenses to correct their vision.
However for those people who wish to eliminate the hassle of eyeglasses or contact lenses help is available in the form of LASIK.
Preoperative Care LASIK is used to correct vision by altering the shape of the cornea.
For this the surgeon generally advises the patient to stop wearing contact lenses from about a week before the procedure.
The surgeon will also perform a test beforehand to study the shape of the cornea as well as its thickness to determine the amount and location of the cornea to be reshaped.
Most importantly the patient will be asked to begin using an antibiotic before the procedure is done to preclude the chances of infection.
Procedure The patient is administered a local anesthesia and is given a sedative to keep him calm through the procedure.
A flap is first cut in the cornea with a mechanical microkeratome or with a laser keratome and folded back to reveal the stroma.
Then an excimer laser is used to realign the cornea and the flap is repositioned.
Post-operative care is very important to prevent infection and other complications.
Though the procedure itself sounds very simple it is actually a very precise surgery that helps to improve vision.
However in some cases there may be complications like halo or starbursts around light, inadequate correction or over correction of eyesight, double vision, sensitivity to light, dry eyes and others.
Types of LASIK Conventional LASIK utilizes a common ablation pattern depends on the power of the glasses used by the patient.
A more advanced technique is the wave front optimized LASIK which is also called custom LASIK.
This technique takes the curve of the cornea as well as its thickness into consideration other than the prescription for contact lenses or glasses.
This helps to reduce complications that may crop up with conventional LASIK procedure like glare, halos and problems in night time vision.
Some people benefit more with different treatments such as ASA.
In these techniques the epithelium is removed to perform excimer laser ablation.
LASIK eye surgery cannot be performed on everyone; for example, people with certain medical conditions like diabetes, autoimmune diseases, HIV will be advised against it.
Again if you are taking certain medications like steroids that will delay postoperative healing you cannot have this surgery.
Other than this people under the age of 20, people whose prescription for glasses or contact lenses changes frequently, those who have thin corneas or large pupils may be advised against LASIK.
It is also contraindicated for those persons who participate in contact sports like boxing and similar activities.
LASIK is an effective surgical procedure that can help to correct astigmatism, shortsightedness or farsightedness in most people.
It is relatively painless and does not require hospitalization.
Some complications can arise with this procedure but the use of more advanced techniques and an experienced surgeon can reduce the risks.
In short the benefits far exceed the drawbacks.
Some people opt for contact lenses to correct their vision.
However for those people who wish to eliminate the hassle of eyeglasses or contact lenses help is available in the form of LASIK.
Preoperative Care LASIK is used to correct vision by altering the shape of the cornea.
For this the surgeon generally advises the patient to stop wearing contact lenses from about a week before the procedure.
The surgeon will also perform a test beforehand to study the shape of the cornea as well as its thickness to determine the amount and location of the cornea to be reshaped.
Most importantly the patient will be asked to begin using an antibiotic before the procedure is done to preclude the chances of infection.
Procedure The patient is administered a local anesthesia and is given a sedative to keep him calm through the procedure.
A flap is first cut in the cornea with a mechanical microkeratome or with a laser keratome and folded back to reveal the stroma.
Then an excimer laser is used to realign the cornea and the flap is repositioned.
Post-operative care is very important to prevent infection and other complications.
Though the procedure itself sounds very simple it is actually a very precise surgery that helps to improve vision.
However in some cases there may be complications like halo or starbursts around light, inadequate correction or over correction of eyesight, double vision, sensitivity to light, dry eyes and others.
Types of LASIK Conventional LASIK utilizes a common ablation pattern depends on the power of the glasses used by the patient.
A more advanced technique is the wave front optimized LASIK which is also called custom LASIK.
This technique takes the curve of the cornea as well as its thickness into consideration other than the prescription for contact lenses or glasses.
This helps to reduce complications that may crop up with conventional LASIK procedure like glare, halos and problems in night time vision.
Some people benefit more with different treatments such as ASA.
In these techniques the epithelium is removed to perform excimer laser ablation.
LASIK eye surgery cannot be performed on everyone; for example, people with certain medical conditions like diabetes, autoimmune diseases, HIV will be advised against it.
Again if you are taking certain medications like steroids that will delay postoperative healing you cannot have this surgery.
Other than this people under the age of 20, people whose prescription for glasses or contact lenses changes frequently, those who have thin corneas or large pupils may be advised against LASIK.
It is also contraindicated for those persons who participate in contact sports like boxing and similar activities.
LASIK is an effective surgical procedure that can help to correct astigmatism, shortsightedness or farsightedness in most people.
It is relatively painless and does not require hospitalization.
Some complications can arise with this procedure but the use of more advanced techniques and an experienced surgeon can reduce the risks.
In short the benefits far exceed the drawbacks.
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