Those who have been wearing glasses or lenses for more than a year are familiar with the term “laser vision correction”. In this article, we will tell you who it can help, what guarantees of results there are and how the operation goes.
There are three of them: myopia, farsightedness, astigmatism.
These are different diseases, but they have a common feature – a person sees some objects clearly, while others are blurry.
To understand why, stretch out your hand and look at the tip of your index finger.
Then move your gaze to any distant object behind your finger, such as a wall. Your hand will become blurry, out of focus.
This is because our eye at one point in time clearly sees objects only at the same distance. Just a finger or just a wall.
This happens because inside our eye there is a lens. This is a lens that can stretch or contract. When we look into the distance, it becomes almost flat to enhance the clarity of the image and transfer it to the retina. Therefore, in order to consider distant objects, we squint.
If you need to consider objects near the muscles in the eye, they compress the crystalline lens, make it convex.
If, for some reason, the muscles tense up, but do not relax back, the person becomes short-sighted – he sees well near, but badly at a distance. This is because his crystalline lens is always convex.
The opposite situation is that the muscles of the eye are weak and cannot compress the crystalline lens. Then a person sees well in the distance, but there is not enough strength to consider objects near.
Astigmatism is a completely different problem related to the cornea and not to the shape of the eye. The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye and helps us see clearly. Normally, the cornea is semicircular, but if it is slightly curved, then all objects will be distorted. To see them clearly, you will have to strain, squint, so people with astigmatism get tired of their eyes very quickly and have a headache.
To understand how people with astigmatism see, look in the mirror. You can clearly see your reflection. Now take a spoon and look at your reflection in the convex part. This is how the cornea distorts irregularly shaped objects. Because of this, a person sees everything blurry.
We cannot directly influence the shape of the crystalline lens to cure farsightedness or nearsightedness. But not only the lens affects clarity. The cornea is also important. We can get to it and change its shape – make it smoother, flatter or vice versa convex, change it so that a person can focus both near and far.
To change the shape of the cornea, we act on it with an excimer laser. The excimer laser is able to evaporate microlayers of living tissue without heating them and without destroying the structure.
To find out how much and how exactly you need to change the shape of the cornea, we first conduct an examination and draw up a map of the eye. Then special equipment compares the data obtained with what is needed for 100% vision and draws up an individual vision correction program for each individual patient.
The operation lasts 10 minutes and is performed in our clinic using Topo-LASIK-SBK (Contoura™ Vision) technology. Most of the time is spent preparing – several anesthesias, anesthesia, etc. The laser itself works for 1-15 seconds per eye, depending on the degree of disease.
To prevent you from moving during the operation, your head and the eye itself are fixed. The device for laser correction makes more than 100 measurements of the positions of the eye in 1 second. If for some reason the position of the eye changes, the laser will instantly stop.
The device that makes up your personal eye map is called Topolizer. It identifies any defects in the cornea that prevent you from seeing clearly. During the operation itself, the excimer laser will correct these defects, literally polishing the cornea to the desired state.
It won’t hurt. First, we will make an incision in the cornea with a special device and form a flap, which we will then bend to the side. The device will compare the data received on the Topolizer and align the cornea with a laser. See how it will happen – scroll to the right.
After that, we will put the flap back in place. No stitches, no discomfort. The flap will snap into place and leave no marks. After that, you will remain under observation at the Center for another 15-20 minutes and then go home.
Vision will improve on the same day – there is no big recovery period. The next day you will be able to go to work, read books, sit at the computer – do any daily activities.
Depending on the individual and the degree of astigmatism, farsightedness and nearsightedness, the results vary from person to person. Most people leave with 100% vision. For some, the result is 120%, that is, almost an eagle eye.
In any case, the result of the operation is 100% predictable and vision does not fall after. The only exceptions are those cases when, after a few months or years, the eye begins to change shape – grow, shrink, etc. In this case, the focal point disappears again and vision deteriorates.
Such patients do additional correction. The procedure is the same, it takes 10 minutes and is free. But, we emphasize that the percentage of such cases is small.
Unfortunately, laser eye surgery is not for everyone. With high degrees of astigmatism, it is not possible to change the shape of the cornea to the desired level. In this case, other methods are used, which we tell patients about.
In addition, it is important to know the thickness of your cornea. It is different for all people. If its layer is too thin, then it cannot be sanded. We check the thickness of the cornea during the initial examination.
For children, laser eye surgery is not done, as their eye continues to grow. The minimum age is 18 years old.
Pregnant women can have surgery in the first or second trimester. Later and during feeding is not recommended. Vision corrected during pregnancy does not deteriorate during childbirth.
Laser eye surgery can be done at any time of the year, after undergoing a full examination in the clinic where the operation will take place. Clinics generally do not accept results from other locations.
