Posts Tagged ‘LASIK’

Some Complications with LASIK

Monday, December 8th, 2008

Though rare, there are still LASIK surgery patients that complain about post surgical problems. However, if you have an experienced surgeon by your side, the rate of surgical complications is greatly reduced. Common sense aside, one should base their decisions on the actual facts reported by their treatment provider. Overall, the number of complications are generally reported to be less than 1%. Most of the reported problems are handled through laser re-treatments or enhancements.

In order to understand the kind of complications people have, you should understand what a LASIK treatment is all about. During LASIK surgery a laser beam is used to cut a very thin, hinged flap into the front of the eye. The flap is then lifted and the laser is applied to re-shape the eye, and then the flap is replaced to heal.

Some of the more common types of LASIK complications are improperly formed LASIK flaps: Sometimes after the first surgery, a patient might experience an improperly formed flap. This might create an irregular surface and cause various vision defects. In such cases, LASIK surgery needs to be repeated one or more times to make the eye surface smooth. That’s why you really need to speak to LASIK doctors about these sort of issues to understand the risks involved here.

Inflamation – The area where the flap touches the eye can sometimes swell post LASIK surdery. Such a condition, is called diffuse lamellar keratitis (DLK). It may create symptoms such as sensitivity towards light and loss of Vision .

Epithelial In growth – If there is any kind of initial swelling in the eye it might create a common LASIK complication called Epithelial in growth. This condition can be best described as a type of scarring which leads to an irregular eye surface and other vision distortions. In such a condition the surgeon lifts the flap and scrapes out the epithelial growth from inside. This is certainly not a full proof method. It has been noticed that in many cases the epithelial in growth reoccurs.

Some other common types of Lasik Eye Surgery complications include dry eye, infections, and night vision problems such as glaring around the lights.

Seasoned LASIK surgeons know that with improvements in technology, the complications can be greatly reduced. People who have had a history of eye complications or infections are not advised to go for these surgeries.

LASIK Procedure to Correct Eye Problems

Monday, December 8th, 2008

The term LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileuses. LASIK eye surgery is a medical procedure performed on a patient who has eye problems. These eye problems can be any of the following: being farsighted or nearsighted, and astigmatism. Furthermore, LASIK eye surgery is performed so that a person with any of the aforementioned eye problems would not have to wear eyeglasses or contact lenses. Nowadays, LASIK eye surgery is one of the most common medical procedures that an eye doctor performs on a patient.

Obviously there are still a lot of people with concerns regarding Lasik and these is based on the larged amount of LASIK doctors available now a day. Once a patient decides to undergo this kind of surgery, the shape of the cornea will be permanently changed. This is because a rounded “flap” is created on the cornea. Afterwards, with the use of laser or an instrument called the ‘microkeratome’, there is a part of the eye which will be vaporized to correct the eye problem.

LASIK eye surgery has become quite popular in the medical circle because of its painless-free operation. One more advantage that it has over other medical procedures to correct an imperfect vision is that the results are instantaneous. Right after the operation, you just need to let a day or two pass and you will see a definite improvement with your vision. However, there are some disadvantages to this type of medical procedure. First concern is with the cost of the procedure – it’s one of the most expensice medical procedure these days.

No medical procedure is devoid of complications; LASIK is not exempted and there are reports of unwanted results after LASIK surgery also. Third, some job types will not allow an employee to undergo any form of eye surgery. If you decide to go for LASIK eye surgery, you need to do your part and research so that you will know everything about the procedure. Also, have a thorough talk with your doctor so that you would know what to do before the operation. Finally, you can ask about the results and improvements with your vision problem right after your LASIK eye surgery.

Differentiate the Myth from the Truth about LASIK Surgery

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Let’s face it, in the last 10 years we have heard and read a lot about the famous Lasik operations, but still many people out there seem to have a lot of trouble finding the right doctor.

Now that Lasik vision correction surgery has been accepted for a number of years, there are several popular options for the procedure.  One of these is IntraLasik, or Intralase, or bladeless Lasik.  As the name implies, there is no cutting of the eye with a blade involved, instead the flap in the eye is made using a laser.  Since bladeless Lasik is a newer procedure, there are a number of opinions around about how well this procedure works. These opinions warrant the need for a second look, so let’s check them one by one.

First, more Lasik clients get 20/20 vision or better using IntraLasik.  Any Lasik procedure cannot guarantee perfect vision for every client, though more than 90% get results to at least 20/40 vision.  However, it is true that the new techniques of IntraLasik do get even better statistics for giving clients clear vision.

The second common contention is that LASIK surgery can’t be tailored to conform to individual needs.  This is not true. The Lasik physician has control over the use of the laser for each individual in the same way that he can control the microkeratome blade.

IntraLasik can be used for both a standard and a custom Lasik procedure.  This is true.  Custom Lasik procedures using Wavefront technology (another somewhat recent advances in Lasik vision correction) can easily be used with a laser to make the initial flap.  This custom Lasik procedure, though more costly, is of great benefit for people with unusual eye shapes or problems. It is in this moments where you don’t really want to go cheap and you want to be sure you are investing the right amount in finding the proper doctors that you need.

Some have heard that using the laser is less accurate than the standard Lasik procedure. This is not true since lasers can be controlled to micron level accuracy.  This gives the Lasik Eye Surgery physician extreme control to create exactly the flap needed for this particular individual eye: the precise size, shape, and depth for successful completion of the Lasik procedure.

Another common fallacy is that IntraLase has not been around long enough for trusted Lasik physicians to have confidence in it.  On the contrary, many of the most honored Lasik physicians strongly endorse IntraLase due to the good track record from the Lasik procedures.  In addition, the quality of the machines and the precision that they give these Lasik physicians is very impressive.  So the question is: which are the best LASIK Doctors out there? Well, this is not an easy question to answer. But in my personal point of view, and please remember that this is 100% subjective, I will recommend Denver lasik laser eye surgery, mainly because they have the top doctors for this procedure in the country.

Many of the top notch Lasik doctors recommend this as a procedure of choice, assuming cost is not a significant variable in the decision of which Lasik procedure to use. That’s why the only determinant on whether a patient should undergo LASIK or not is the cost. The procedure is relatively pricey. The procedure, however, is very safe and many surgeons around the world recommend LASIK. So if you want the best, you do need to pitch in some amount.

Similar to the contentions above, some people think that Intralase is not a sufficiently tested Lasik procedure option. On the contrary, more than one million of these procedures have been performed, and the impressive track record for this Lasik procedure has been discussed above. This eye procedure is here to stay and the number of doctors trained to do LASIK is increasing around the world.

As a last advice, I can only recommend that you take your time choosing the proper doctor, this is a serious procedure and you should only do it with the medical team you feel comfortable with. Best of luck and thanks for reading.

The complex cases of Myopia

Thursday, September 11th, 2008

Myopia occurs in different degrees from minimal to extreme. The more myopic you are the blurrier your vision is at a distance and objects will have to be closer to you so you can see them clearly. Myopia up to 3.0 dioptres (D) is termed mild degree, 3.0 to 6.0D is moderate degree and high degree is 6.0D and over. A dioptre is a measurement of the focusing power of a lens. Myopia progression dropped from .25 diopters per year to .05 diopters per year on the average. Unfortunately, treatment with drops may be worse than the disease.

Myopia is best treated with eyeglasses and contact lenses which compensate for the elongated shape of the eye allowing the light to focus properly on the retina. As children (and their eyes) grow through the teen years, the condition typically worsens and then levels off in adulthood. Myopia or nearsightedness, a condition that results in the inability to see distant objects clearly, affects one in four Americans and is the most common eye disorder in the world with an enormous public health and economic impact. Depending on epidemiologic definition, 3-19% of acquired blindness has been ascribed to myopia. Myopia was the most common cause of blindness in age group 50-59. In age group 60-69, it was second only to diabetic retinopathy, but was considerably more important than that disease in terms of years of blindness.

Myopia tends to run in families, so it is probably inherited. Myopia tends to start in the early teens (earlier for high myopes), and increases as the eye grows in length during puberty. Myopia can be easily diagnosed during a routine eye exam. Usually, a visual acuity test combined with a refraction assessment can not only identify nearsightedness, but can also determine the degree of myopia. Myopia is the medical term for nearsightedness. People with myopia see objects more clearly when they are close to the eye, while distant objects appear blurred or fuzzy, now the good thing is that it can be fix with Lasik Surgery .

Myopia usually occurs between the ages of 8 to 12 years. Since the eyes continue to grow during childhood, nearsightedness almost always occurs before the age of 20. Myopia is mainly caused by the eyeball being longer than normal from side to side. In this condition, distant objects appear blurred but near objects are clear. Myopia is often observed in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). ROP is seen in 68 percent of infants with low birth weights and over 80 percent of infants born with ROP will be myopic. Then later on they can choose to try contact lenses, but that will not stop the myopia in the long run.

Myopia is a common refractive error, which exists from a young age. A unilateral myopia, with or without amblyopia, might remain undiscovered for a long time. Myopia is a vision defect commonly known as nearsightedness . Those with myopia can see clearly up to a certain distance, then objects begin to appear fuzzy or out of focus. Myopia that first appears in middle age can indicate cataracts. If nearsightedness comes on suddenly and seems to change daily, it could be the result of uncontrolled diabetes.

Myopia is the most common eye problem. It affects as much as 40 percent of the population in the United States and Europe but between 70 and 90 percent of some Asian populations such as Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong. Myopia develops during childhood. The child’s eyeball grows too long, which interferes with the light-focusing mechanism. Myopia is a very common condition that affects nearly 30 percent of the U.S. It normally starts to appear between the ages of eight and 12 years old, and almost always before the age of 20.