LASER EYE SURGERY

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LASER EYE SURGERY
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Outline
I. Title Page II. Outline III. PRK Laser
Surgery IV. Risks V. LASIK Laser Surgery VI.
Risks
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PRK Laser Surgery Method
PRK is an outpatient procedure generally
performed with local anesthetic eye drops. This
type of refractive surgery gently reshapes the
cornea by removing microscopic amounts of tissue
from the outer surface with a cool,
computer-controlled ultraviolet beam of light.
The beam is so precise it can cut notches in a
strand of human hair without breaking it, and
each pulse can remove 39 millionths of an inch of
tissue in 12 billionths of a second. The
procedure itself takes only a few minutes.
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RISKS
PRK Laser Surgery only takes up to a few minutes,
but side affects of a successful surgery could
last up to several months, and an unsuccessful
surgery even longer. One may experience blurry
vision or light halos for up to six months after
the procedure. In the worst case scenario, the
cornea is not properly restored, which can result
in deformed vision forever. The instance of an
unsuccessful surgery is less than 1 and
decreasing with time.
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LASIK LASIK surgery is performed on an out
patient basis. That means there is no hospital
stay. The surgeon creates a flap in the cornea
using a microkeratome. This flap is still
attached to the cornea. The flap is lifted and
laid back. Using a state of art excimer laser,
the surgeon removes a pre-determined amount of
corneal tissue from the exposed corneal bed. The
amount of tissue removed is based upon the power
of your eye found during the pre-examination with
the surgeon. This measurement is usually in
agreement with your recent prescriptions for
eyeglasses and/or contact lenses. Once the
correct amount of tissue has been removed the
flap is replaced. Natural forces hold the flap in
place on the cornea. Within a few hours the
surface epithelium of the cornea begins to grow
over the cut edge of the flap to seal it into
position. The LASIK procedure can be used to
correct myopia (near sightedness), hyperopia
(farsightedness) and astigmatism. For the LASIK
procedure it is important to leave behind enough
corneal tissue for the strength of the cornea to
be maintained. The minimum amount of corneal
tissue required post-operatively is 250 microns
or ¼ mm. This does not include the flap of 160
microns. For those