Common types of eye laser surgeries

Laser eye surgery is a kind of eye surgery aimed to improve vision acuity by a laser reshaping the cornea, which is the outer clear structure that covers the colored part of the eye. Laser eye surgery is a popular alternative for correcting eye sight problems, besides spectacles or contact lenses. Most patients choose laser eye surgery for correcting myopia or nearsightedness. Laser eye surgery can also correct hyperopia or astigmatism, or a combination of above problems. Currently, there are several surgeries that are feasible to deal with different visual problems. They differ in laser type or the way to reshape the cornea.

Preoperative preparation and postoperative care

Most patients who have laser eye surgeries will get good eyesight of 20/20 vision. However, just like all medical surgeries, laser eye surgery has both risks and benefits, and a few patients may suffer from complications. While surgical complications will usually disappear after a certain time, imperfect reshaping outcomes are much more disappointing. Excessive and inadequate corneal reshaping during the surgery will both lead to unsatisfactory visual acuity. Some patients need to have an enhancement surgery. And some others even have to wear prescription glasses or contact lenses in the remaining lifetime. So, before the laser eye surgery is carried out, you should visit an eye doctor to have a comprehensive eye exam to see if you are a candidate for such a surgery.

Some common types of laser eye surgeries

There are many types of laser eye surgeries, and the most common ones are LASIK, PRK, and LASEK. LASIK is the most commonly performed eye laser correction procedure. During this type of laser eye surgery, a flap is cut on the outer layer of the eye. And them it will be folded aside. A laser will be used to reshape the surface of the cornea under the flap. After precise and adequate corneal reshaping, the flap will be put back to the same position. An advancement of LASIK is custom LASIK, during which a wavefront technology is used to achieve more precise corneal reshaping. Another variation is blade-free LASIK, which utilizes an IntraLase laser. PRK is short for photorefractive keratectomy and LASEK is short for laser-assisted sub-epithelial keratectomy. These two types of laser eye surgeries are quite similar. They both create a flap from the outer layer of the cornea or epithelium, which can heal by itself quickly.