LASIK / PRK / LASEK
Treatments of vision disorders such as myopia, hypermetropia and astigmatism with excimer laser have been widely known in medicine. Millions of patients have been treated with this method since 1980s. In laser treatments, no tissue removal is made in the eye. Cornea is re-shaped by ablation which is a method of vaporization.
LASIK method consists of making a small opening a flap on the upper surface of cornea and adjusting the vision ability with excimer laser.
There are different variations of LASIK treatment:
- LASIK: Performed with a microkeratome flap.
- FEMTOLASIK: Corneal flap is done by femtosecond laser. Click for more information…
- iLASIK: It can be called iDesign Lasik, Wavefront Lasik or A-CAT Lasik. With the help of an aberrometry device, it can detect not only the distance vision problems, but also minor problems that other techniques can not. All the disorders can be fixed and the patient can have a much better vision in general. Once you have a consultation with your doctor, you can find out whether you are suitable or not.
PRK (Photorefractive Keratectomy)
If a patient suffers from myopia, hypermetropia or astigmatism but does not have the sufficient thickness of cornea to have a LASIK treatment, PRK is one of the solutions.
The upper surface of cornea which is called epithelium is folded and excimer laser is applied to the inner surface. As there is no flap made onto the cornea, a protective contact lens is located on the cornea. Obtaining the results can take longer than a LASIK treatment – around 3-4 weeks. 2 to 4 days after the procedure can be slightly painful due to the healing process of epithelium. In a classical LASIK surgery, corneal flap is opened, whereas in PRK surgery the epithelium tissue is scraped and folded.
LASEK
It is performed in patients that do not have enough thickness of cornea. It may resemble to PRK treatment, but in this technique the epithelium is elevated with thinned alcohol solution and then laser is applied. As there is not any incision made in the epithelium, pain level is lower than PRK, but having the results take longer than a LASIK procedure.
EPI-LASIK
This technique is another alternative to PRK and LASEK. The only difference is that a special device that is called epikeratome is utilized to elevate the epithelium. Pain is much lower than PRK and LASEK, and the healing process is shorter.