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Have you decided to throw away your eyeglasses? Have you changed your mind and you want to never use contact lenses again? How will you handle driving or reading when you have myopia, hyperopia or astigmatism? With LASIK.

What is LASIK?

LASIK is a rather new type of refractive surgery designed to reshape the cornea and produce clearer vision for people with myopia, hyperopia or astigmatism. After the surgery your dependency on spectacles or contact lenses will either be considerably decreased or you will not need glasses at all.

LASIK means Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis. Your cornea is reshaped with a laser. A flap is cut in the cornea with a knife, called microkeratome. The surgeon folds the flap and exposes the stroma. The pulses of the laser vaporize a portion of the stroma, the middlesection of the cornea. Afterwards the flap is replaced and your vision should be 20/20.

The most you can expect from refractive surgery is the convenience of a reduced need for corrective lenses. To achieve that convenience, you must accept some risk. We hope to help you minimize that risk, but risk cannot be eliminated.

Risks

The target of the refractive surgery is the convenience of a reduced need for corrective eyeglasses. However, in order to reach this goal you must also accept a series of risks. Your surgeon will surely try to minimize those risks, but you should be aware that the risks cannot be eliminated.

1. You may loose your vision.

2.You may develop an infection and and your healing may be delayed.

3.Your vision may be undercorrected / overcorrected. ¹

4.You may develop severe dry eye syndrome. ^{2, 3, 4}

5.Your vision may diminish over the years.

6.You may see halos or have a sensitivity to light

7.You may develop a macular hole or a posterior vitreous detachment.

8.You may get a corneal abrasion.

9.Your eye may get infected after the surgery.

Advantages

On the other hand, the laser eye surgery has a lot of benefits and nobody can deny them:

1.The vision is corrected. Approximately 90% of patients will live with the desired vision after the intervention.

2.It is almost painless.

3.Vision improvement is sensed immediately or by the next day.

4.Recovery is quick. Usually no bandages or stitches are required after the intervention.

5.Most patients no longer need corrective eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Each patient must choose the best option after considering all that one can win and all that one can loose after a LASIK intervention.

Resources:

1. Ambrosio, R, Wilson, SE. Complications of Laser in situ Keratomileusis: Etiology, Prevention, and Treatment. J Refract Surg 17, May/June 2001.

2. Wilson SE. Laser in situ keratomileusis-induced (presumed) neurotrophic epitheliopathy. Ophthalmology 2001 Jun;108(6):1082-7.

3. Benitez-del-Castillo JM, del Rio T, Iradier T, Hernandez JL, Castillo A, Garcia-Sanchez J. Decrease in tear secretion and corneal sensitivity after laser in situ keratomileusis. Cornea 2001 Jan;20(1):30-2.

4. Yu EY, Leung A, Rao S, Lam DS. Effect of laser in situ keratomileusis on tear stability. Ophthalmology 2000 Dec;107(12):2131-5.

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