Lasik – Profiling the Cornea

Lasik treatment is a good and well-liked surgery to help in improving the quality of vision. In many people, Lasik has helped in either reducing or totally eradicating the necessity of glasses or contacts. Before the surgery, all patients will need to go through a screening and eye examination to evaluate whether they are ideal candidates for the treatment.

Once the initial evaluation and examination is completed and the doctor certifies that the patient can get the surgery done, the options that are available to the person are informed. There are some options that a person can choose from for techniques in Lasik. One such option commonly opted for is excimer laser. This has extensively been used in corrective eye surgeries from way back in 1987. With the help of the laser, the surgeon will profile the cornea which improves the results from the surgery.

Lasik is mostly done in patients in whom vision problems are categorized as low to moderate. Lasik is useful in treating patients who are either farsighted or nearsighted. The procedure is very quick and painless and improvements in the sight are generally seen quickly after the procedure has been completed.

Profiling the cornea with the help of the excimer laser usually improves the results seen from the procedure. While it is impossible for any surgeon to guarantee perfect vision from the procedure, usually more than 90 percent of people who get the procedure have good results. Lasik helps in eradicating the need for glasses or contacts however this is not true for every case. So, every person taking up the procedure cannot conclude that the procedure will definitely abolish the need for corrective lenses.

Another option that the patient has will be to get the surgery done with another piece of equipment called the microkeratome as an alternative to the excimer laser. This is used to create the flap in the cornea. This procedure, if handled with the excimer laser, will be more precise, accurate and the results are far better. After reflecting the flap, profiling of the cornea is done. The meaning of this is that the flap is reflected and corneal tissue is removed using the laser to reshape the cornea. Depending on the degree of correction required, the surgeon will remove tissue from predetermined areas of the cornea. The laser emits cool ultraviolet rays to vaporize the tissue.

The corneal tissue is removed to help in reshaping the cornea. This helps in changing the way light falls on the retina and brings about improvements in the sight. Once the reshaping is complete, the flap is replaced and allowed to heal. The procedure is quickly completed and the patient is alert through out the procedure. If the doctor is working on both the eyes, some gap will be given before the second eye is operated upon. Many patients prefer to give a gap of a week or two before the second eye is operated.

The excimer laser has many benefits attached to it. As the precision is extremely good, the results from the surgery will be much superior. Another advantage is the good control the surgeon gets while handling the laser. The laser comes with a control panel to monitor the intensity and the positioning of the beam. With the help of a tracking device, the movements of the eye are tracked and the positioning of the beam becomes more accurate. This degree of precision helps in providing better results out of the procedure. The surgeon also has the option of putting off the laser beam at any point of time during the procedure which gives better degree of control on the equipment.

There are several advantages of getting Lasik corrective eye surgery. Lasik provides freedom from wearing glasses or contacts to many patients who opt for the procedure. Even though this might not hold good for all patients, there are still many who get to enjoy this benefit. The complications that can arise from the procedure are quite less. A small percentage of people might have complications like distorted vision, halos in low light, pain, etc. In many cases, these side effects will disappear without any additional treatment. But, some might need an additional surgical procedure to correct the problems.