Laser Eye Correction Can Benefit Many
There are several reasons why someone might seek out an experienced LASIK surgeon in Orange County for laser vision correction. It might be to further their career or simply to make life more convenient. In either case, LASIK surgery can help people realize their full vision potential without always having to rely on their prescription glasses or contacts. This level of freedom can allow people to pursue hobbies, careers, and lifestyles that they’ve always wanted for themselves. Here are some examples of how LASIK can help individuals in specific ways:
LASIK is Perfect for Parents
Whether you’re a stay-at-home parent or not, you know that looking after children is a full-time commitment. There are no sick days and no vacation days. So, when you struggle with your vision on a daily basis, this can make parenting even harder. Instead of always losing or directing your glasses or contacts, you could visit an Orange County LASIK surgeon to discuss laser vision correction. LASIK makes parenting tasks a breeze, from driving them to school to reading them a bedtime story to watching them as they play in the backyard. With excellent vision, you will feel more confident in your ability to look after your children and you will get to enjoy the experience to the fullest.
LASIK Can Help You Reach Your Career Goals
There are many people chasing certain career paths that could benefit from laser eye surgery from an Orange County LASIK clinic such as Excel Laser Vision Institute. Astronauts are one of the esteemed professionals that require excellent vision to get their job done. At NASA, astronauts are required to have 20/100 distant visual acuity or better uncorrected and corrected to 20/20 for each eye. Construction workers, firefighters, and law enforcement are other paths in which vision is necessary for safety and efficiency. Any profession that is battling the elements will need eye correction options that do not get in the way. Glasses and contacts can sometimes cause more problems than solutions in these cases. With LASIK eye surgery, people on the job don’t have to worry about letting anyone down because of their vision limitations. Emergency responders, surgeons, and lifeguards are another line of professionals that not only benefit from LASIK themselves but can also use this resource to help save lives because of the power and freedom that it grants them.
LASIK Lets You do What You Love
People with an inclination for any kind of creative expression will appreciate the freedom and clarity that LASIK eye surgery can give them. Having sharp eyesight is necessary to excel in photography as a career or a hobby. Glasses can be particularly burdensome for looking through camera viewfinders and shooting outdoor landscapes. Painters, sculptors, and mixed-media artists can improve their perspective of color, contrast, and depth with LASIK, which allows them to have a better handle on their art.
There are so many ways that LASIK eye surgery can support the career, hobby, or lifestyle you’ve always wanted. Through laser vision correction, many patients have been able to achieve 20/20 vision or better.
Questions To Ask From Your LASIK Surgeon
If you’re considering laser eye surgery and you want to speak to a LASIK surgeon in Orange County, then it is a good idea to have some questions prepared before you visit a clinic. Many people rely on the bits of information that they know about the procedure and forget to do their homework on the rest. Your LASIK eye specialist will likely provide all the information that you need about your procedure. However, it is not a bad idea to have a few other things clarified so that you can feel confident in your surgery. These questions will also help you evaluate the expertise of your surgeon and the kind of work they do at their clinic. Once you are fully on board with your choice of LASIK professionals, you will feel much better going into your procedure.
How many LASIK procedures has your surgeon performed?
Many patients ask this question in order to get a sense of their surgeon’s background and knowledge. While there is not a particular number that you should look for, you should use this information to gauge your LASIK surgeon’s level of experience and confidence in their ability to produce favorable results. You might also want to learn the types of laser eye surgeries that they have performed in order to see the range of their capabilities as an Orange County LASIK surgeon.
What kind of LASIK technology is used at this clinic?
The world of LASIK is continually shifting and advancing. So, it is important that your LASIK clinic in Orange County is using the latest and most efficient machines for your procedure. The kind of laser technology that a LASIK clinic has is especially important for procedures like bladeless LASIK. The better the machines, the more options you have for customizable procedures that fit your vision needs. Newer technology that is well-maintained will also improve accuracy results and safety.
Why are you a good candidate for LASIK?
LASIK is not right for everyone. Some people may require an alternative form of laser eye surgery like PRK or SMILE. Others may not benefit from refractive surgery at all because of preexisting health conditions. So, when you are discussing laser eye surgery with a LASIK specialist, be sure to have them explain your candidacy to you.
How can you prepare for your surgery?
There are a few different ways to prepare for the day of your surgery. Your LASIK doctor will likely convey all this information to you to make your procedure as efficient as possible with little to no discomfort. Some of the recommendations may be to avoid wearing makeup, to stop wearing contact lenses, and have comfortable clothing on. You can learn more about the best steps to take for your surgery by consulting your doctor.
What is the surgery like?
In order to feel more confident walking into your surgery, it is important to know what to expect. If you don’t know what LASIK is like, then go ahead and have your surgeon explain the process to you. You can ask them how long it takes, what they’re going to do, and what it’s going to feel like. It’s always best to know this information beforehand so you’re not caught off guard.
What happens after the surgery?
The last thing that you’ll probably want to plan for is your life after LASIK surgery, from recovery to beyond. You might want to ask your LASIK specialist how long the recovery period will last and what symptoms you should look out for. You can also learn how soon you’ll be able to return to your normal routine.
These are some good baseline questions that will help you feel more confident in your LASIK surgeon and LASIK clinic. If you have any others, feel free to ask! After all, this procedure is meant to accommodate your needs and your lifestyle. Once you fully understand the process, you can get started on achieving your vision goals!
The Difference Between Contoura And LASIK
The LASIK surgeon in Orange County informs us that Lasik and Contoura are two eye surgery procedures that are believed to be excellent variants of laser vision correction. Eye doctors of LASIK in Orange County inform us that the way they choose between the two procedures is through a series of comprehensive eye examinations and discussions with the patient about their vision needs and expectations.
It is important to understand and critically evaluate both LASIK and contoura eye surgery before making a final decision.
What Is Contoura Eye Surgery?
Contoura Vision, which is also referred to as a type of topography-guided LASIK, is the most recent FDA approved evolution in cutting-edge LASIK technology. The LASIK surgeon in Orange County says that the benefits of this procedure appeal to many patients who are thinking about eye laser surgery.
Contoura eye surgery in Los Angeles is very beneficial to patients who do not qualify for LASIK surgery because of irregularities in the cornea. This topography-guided LASIK treats both the shape of the patient’s eye and the surface texture of the cornea, whereas other LASIK treatments only correct the shape of the eye.
The Contoura technology provides eye surgeons with detailed data that calculates the unique characteristics of each person’s eyes. As a result of this, an individualized treatment plan is created using this information that surgeons can use to perform personalized LASIK procedures on each eye.
How Was Contoura Vision Developed?
Over the years, vision correction has moved in leaps and bounds to help those with poorer eyesight see clearly. For instance, eyeglasses were invented in the 13th century in Europe, and contact lenses were first produced in the late 1800s from hand blown glass in Switzerland.
As time moved on, innovations in correcting refractive errors became more sophisticated. For example, a Russian ophthalmologist developed radial keratotomy, which is a surgical procedure to treat short-sightedness.
During a radial keratotomy procedure, the surgeon creates an incision with a diamond knife from the center of the cornea to the periphery to change the cornea’s curvature. Nowadays, radial keratotomy is still used to treat specific forms of astigmatism.
The late 1980s saw the introduction of excimer lasers, which are used to reshape the contours of the eye. Back then, the technique was known as photorefractive keratectomy and was approved in the early 1990s by the U.S. FDA. Ever since then, PRK laser-assisted eye surgery has achieved more precise and long-lasting corrections to refractive errors.
LASIK, which is an acronym for laser-assisted in-situ keratomileuses, has refined the techniques of RK and PRK. During LASIK surgery, a small flap of the cornea is lifted to reshape the underlying corneal tissues. Afterward, the flap is placed back and left to heal without any need for stitches. LASIK surgery is the most common corrective refractive surgical procedure around the globe to correct astigmatism, near-sightedness, and far-sightedness.
Before the turn of the new millennium, doctors developed wavefront analysis, which maps the errors of a patient’s eye in its entirety. The data is programmed into the laser, which provides a customized procedure with more accurate results. Contoura Vision is based on the foundation of topography, providing a precise mapping of 22,000 points of the cornea. Traditional LASIK wave-front only maps around 200 points of the whole eye.
Are You A Candidate For Topography-Guided LASIK?
To find out whether you are a good candidate for Contoura Vision is contingent on a thorough consultation by an experienced LASIK surgeon in Orange County. He or she can best determine whether the procedure is right for you.
Normally, Topography-Guided LASIK is particularly helpful to patients with several vision issues such as myopia (nearsightedness), irregular corneas and/or astigmatism. Contoura uses personalized diagnostic technology to find and record imperfections in the curvature and optics of the cornea, then blends those measurements with the eyeglass prescription so that the eyes can focus better.
These are the standard guidelines for patients who do not qualify for Contoura vision surgery:
- Patients who are younger than 18
- Patients suffering from an immune deficiency disease
- Patients with vascular disease
- Patients with myopia higher than 9.00 D
- Patients who have a prominent nose and brow that obstructs reflection.
Your eye doctor will determine other criteria on a case-to-case basis.
What Is The Difference Between Contoura And LASIK Surgery?
Both procedures are advanced methods of eye laser surgery and are used to correct short-sightedness, long-sightedness, and astigmatism. However, they have some differences between them when it comes to the procedures themselves as well as their outcomes. Here are some of the ways that Contoura and LASIK vary from one another.
Although LASIK is well-renowned as a top-notch surgery to help patients eliminate the need for eyeglasses or contact lenses, the Contoura Vision procedure provides better visual acuity and refractive outcomes in many cases. Contoura Vision takes LASIK corrective surgery to a new level. Also, Contoura Vision utilizes a computer-guided topographic mapping technique that maps microscopic contours of the cornea. Keep in mind that the cornea is the clear front part of the eye.
Contoura Vision can treat irregularities in the curvature of the cornea as well as optics. Most of the time, the underlying cause of vision issues is this irregular curvature. The treatment focuses on the visual axis of the eye while other LASIK procedures only concentrate on the pupil.
When your eye surgeon performs Contoura Vision, the contours of the cornea produced by the computer analysis are programmed into a uniquely designed laser that is utilized for your vision correction. About 22,000 points of the cornea are mapped, which helps the surgeon create an individualized treatment plan, and eventually, the laser applies this treatment to the cornea. Due to the fact that each patient’s eyes are different, no two treatment plans are the same.
Once Contoura Vision surgery is complete, the irregularities of the cornea are smoothed, and optical quality becomes so flawless that light can penetrate the eye evenly. As a result of this, the patient has clear, sharp vision. The Contoura Vision technique does more than provide patients with a means of eye correction to eliminate their need for glasses or contacts. Many patients see more clearly after the treatment than they did when they wore corrective lenses. Also, there are fewer issues with glare and halos around lights. This makes it easier for patients to drive at night and do any other routine activities without the need for corrective lenses.
Contoura eye surgery delivers amazing results. About sixty-five percent of patients who received the treatment had a correction ratio better than 6/6. Moreover, this procedure lessens the amount of tissue irritation and thus leads to a faster recovery. Additionally, Contoura Vision can be used in some cases to treat people who have had LASIK surgery and were not satisfied with the results.
If you want more information about LASIK and Contoura eye surgery in Orange County and Los Angeles, do not hesitate to give Excel Laser Vision Institute a call at (818) 907-8606, or fill out our contact form today!
What is SMILE LASIK Eye Surgery?
If you have vision problems, then you may be looking into procedures like SMILE, LASIK eye surgery, and PRK. All of these are known for correcting refractive errors, but SMILE is the most significant advanced method of eye surgery technology that has been developed in the last ten years. Dr. Moosa, a top LASIK surgeon in Orange County says that SMILE is a one-step, one laser procedure that is considered even less invasive than LASIK!
What Is a SMILE Procedure?
First of all, SMILE is an acronym for “Small Incision Lenticule Extraction”. Also, it is the latest advancement in laser vision correction. According to Dr. Moosa, one of the leading SMILE and LASIK surgeons in Orange County, the SMILE procedure is an innovative laser eye surgery that is perfect for correcting myopia (nearsightedness).
The SMILE procedure is really easy and straightforward since it is a one-step laser eye surgery, generally performed by a VisuMax laser, which is non invasive. When your eye surgeon performs a SMILE procedure, he or she will use a computer-guided, highly focused light to cut a small incision in the cornea and will remove a tiny piece of corneal tissue, which is known as a lenticule. This helps to reshape the cornea and correct your vision.
This vision procedure combines the safety of already established vision correction techniques with more comfort and the possibility of greater accuracy.
SMILE is an Accurate Procedure
As Dr. Moosa of SMILE LASIK Orange County clinic explains, the cornea is made up of five layers. If the patient has eyesight focusing issues, the eye surgeon corrects this by only reshaping the stroma, which is the middle layer. The SMILE laser operates to apply several tiny bubbles to make the base of the lenticule, located in the lower part of the stroma, and then the top of the lenticule, which is situated in the upper part of the stroma.
The surgeon forms a small keyhole incision so they can access the stroma to remove the targeted piece of tissue to correct the patient’s vision. In just a matter of seconds, the cornea has been reshaped and the patient should receive excellent visual results. In short, SMILE vision correction is a pain-free keyhole procedure that a surgeon performs using a single advanced Zeiss laser.
SMILE Is Comfortable And Easy
SMILE doesn’t take too long since the actual laser part of the procedure is fast and completed in twenty-five seconds. SMILE is a very comfortable procedure. The tiny incision in your cornea generally heals in a couple of days and no stitches are required. Although not everyone experiences the exact same result, the majority of our patients have reported feeling amazing and being able to see better as soon as the very next day.
What Are The Benefits Of SMILE?
It is a less invasive surgery
Patients love SMILE because it is a less invasive procedure when compared to LASIK or PRK. During the LASIK procedure, the surgeon creates a flap to correct the patient’s vision, this flap is 20mm in circumference. During a PRK procedure, an 8mm diameter surface removal is made to correct vision. However, during a SMILE procedure, the surgeon only has to create a 3mm keyhole incision in the patient’s cornea. This tiny incision provides less disturbance to corneal nerves and more corneal stability after surgery.
No Flap Surgery
One of the disadvantages of the LASIK procedure is the formation of a permanent flap of corneal tissue. During LASIK, the surgeon creates a small flap of corneal tissue using a femtosecond laser which he or she folds back.
Then the surgeon uses a second laser, which is called an excimer laser to reshape the underlying corneal tissue and correct the patient’s vision. As a result, it is a more complex procedure than this new vision procedure, SMILE.
Additionally, it is good to know that LASIK is a very safe and reliable procedure.
Complications hardly ever occur, however when complications do arise, they are usually ‘flap related complications’ and are a result of the flap created during surgery. Considering the surgeon doesn’t have to create a flap during a SMILE procedure, there is definitely no risk of flap related complications.
SMILE enables people to have a safe and accurate procedure with a quick visual recovery.
If you’re wondering about SMILE LASIK surgery recovery, ophthalmologists have found that SMILE provides faster visual recovery since it only takes around one or two days to deliver optimal results. Plus, it’s just as accurate and safe as traditional LASIK.
SMILE is quiet, odorless, and blade-free
During the LASIK and PRK procedure, the surgeon uses a second laser called an excimer laser. Anyone who has done a LASIK or PRK procedure can confirm the loud ‘clicking’ noise the laser creates when used, which can be unsettling for some patients.
Additionally, the excimer laser is known for a distinct odor during a LASIK procedure, since it is used to vaporize corneal cells. On the other hand, SMILE does not use an excimer laser. Therefore the procedure is not only quieter, but odorless as well.
Less probability of dry eye syndrome
Some patients have dry eyes as a side effect of laser eye surgery. An advantage of SMILE is that it can lower the chance for dry eyes to occur. Since SMILE only consists of a tiny incision created in the cornea, there is only a slight possibility of dry eyes post-surgery.
If You are Not a Good LASIK Candidate, SMILE Might be an Alternative For You
In some cases, an eye surgeon will find that the patient is not suitable for LASIK. The three most common factors that make a patient not eligible for LASIK are the following:
- Patients who play action sports or have jobs with a lot of direct contact to the eyes such as fighters, boxers and so on.
- Susceptibility to dry eyes or chronic eye syndrome.
- Irregularly shaped or thin corneas.
To ascertain if a patient is suitable for a SMILE procedure, the optometrist will examine the patient’s eyes in the following way:
- Check the general health of the patient’s eyes
- Measure the cornea
- Check the pupil size
- Measure the amount of nearsightedness
Consult with your refractive surgeon for the SMILE, LASIK eye surgery, or PRK procedure that works best for you. Once you have an in-depth consultation, you will have a better idea of your eligibility. If you want further information about PRK, SMILE, or LASIK in Los Angeles, fill out our contact form or give Excel Laser Vision Institute a call at + (818) 907-8606 today.
SMILE vs LASIK – Experts Weigh In On the Best Laser Eye Surgery
If you have nearsightedness, like many people in America, then you may be thinking about SMILE vs LASIK eye surgery. While both of these procedures deal with refractive errors, their treatments vary slightly in their method. You can get in touch with a LASIK surgeon in Orange County like Doctor Moosa to have them determine whether you are eligible for one or both of these options. LASIK is a widespread vision correction procedure that has gained high-esteem from medical professionals and patients alike. SMILE, while newer to the scene, is proving to be a very worthy competitor.
SMILE gained FDA approval for use in the United States in September 2016 and has achieved such satisfactory results as to create the ongoing SMILE Relex vs LASIK debate. Here are the essentials about SMILE laser eye surgery from the LASIK experts in Orange County.
What Is SMILE Laser Surgery?
The word ‘SMILE’ is an acronym for Small Incision Lenticule Extraction, which is a lot to say in one go and not so easy to retain in our lexicon. SMILE laser eye surgery is performed by the lasik surgeon in Orange County using a VisuMax femtosecond laser.
During a SMILE procedure, the surgeon uses a femtosecond laser to create a small, lens-shaped piece of tissue, referred to as the lenticule within the cornea. Afterward, with the same laser, a small arc-shaped incision is made on the surface of the cornea, and the surgeon extracts the lenticule through this incision and disposes of it.
A lasik surgeon in Orange County explains that when the small lenticule is removed, the shape of the cornea changes, correcting nearsightedness. The incision created in the cornea heals within a few days without stitches, and sharper vision happens very rapidly.
SMILE laser eye surgery in Orange County can correct up to -10.00 diopters (D) of nearsightedness. To qualify for SMILE eye laser surgery, candidates must be at least 22 years old, have no more than -0.50 D of astigmatism, and their eyeglass prescription must be stable for at least 12 months.
When Is LASIK A Good Option?
For your eye surgeon to consider you as a good candidate for LASIK, a patient has to have enough corneal thickness. The reason for this is because a flap is created during the procedure. Therefore, a certain corneal thickness is needed and those with thin or irregular corneas cannot receive LASIK eye surgery. When an optometrist diagnoses a patient with thin or irregular corneas are usually better candidates for SMILE or PRK.
If a patient is prone to chronic dry eye symptoms, SMILE may be a better option. LASIK is notorious for having a higher risk for postoperative dry eye symptoms and can increase a patient’s previously chronic dry eye condition.
The Advantages Of SMILE
Studies have revealed that SMILE produces basically the same visual acuity as LASIK for the correction of nearsightedness, without the lasik surgeon Orange County having to create a LASIK style corneal flap.
A study with 328 participants who went through the SMILE procedure, had uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) of 20/40 or better after surgery except one of them, and eighty-eight percent had UCVA of 20/20 or better.
Additionally, there is evidence of less risk of dry eye symptoms after SMILE, compared with LASIK. There may be a couple of reasons for this, such as SMILE takes place within the cornea without a large corneal flap, less corneal nerves are impacted by the procedure.
The tiny SMILE incision may also help the cornea have more biomechanical stability after SMILE, in contrast to its ability to keep its shape, particularly following trauma after LASIK.
Ultimately, if you have a high degree of nearsightedness, with LASIK there is a higher risk of requiring an enhancement procedure to obtain the clarity of vision a patient wants without glasses. There seems to be less risk of requiring another procedure after SMILE for correction of severe amounts of myopia, most likely since less dehydration of the cornea happens during the SMILE procedure.
What To Expect From A SMILE Procedure?
At the moment, SMILE laser eye surgery in Los Angeles and Orange County is the most advanced FDA-approved laser vision correction procedure. Here is what to expect from a SMILE procedure.
It Is A One-Step Laser Procedure
The key difference between SMILE and its predecessors is that it is a one laser procedure. PRK and LASIK utilize an excimer laser, but that is not the case in a SMILE procedure. Instead, your eye surgeon will use a femtosecond laser to cut a very small incision in the cornea and use it to remove a tiny piece of corneal tissue, the lenticule.
It Is Less Invasive Surgery
SMILE is a far less invasive laser eye surgery procedure than LASIK. During a LASIK procedure, your eye surgeon creates a flap that is 20mm in circumference. A PRK procedure creates an 8mm diameter surface removal. Nevertheless, a SMILE procedure only creates a 3mm corneal key-hole incision. This provides a more corneal stability post-surgery and less disruption to the corneal nerves during surgery.
It Is Quiet, Odorless, And Blade-Free
During a LASIK and PRK procedure, an excimer laser is used to reshape the cornea. While the eye surgeon is carrying on with the procedure, you will hear a clicking sound that creates an apparent odor. Because the excimer laser isn’t used in a SMILE procedure, it is quiet and odorless.
There Are No Flap-Related Complications
As a result of the surgeon not having to create a flap in a SMILE procedure like LASIK, there is no risk of flap-related complications after surgery.
There Is Safe, Accurate, And Fast Visual Recovery
Clinical trials that were carried out on SMILE revealed that it is just as safe and accurate as LASIK in Orange County.
What Are The Disadvantages Of Smile?
Although SMILE has a lot of benefits, there is one downside to this procedure. That disadvantage is that it is not yet available to treat farsightedness or astigmatism. Therefore, if you have nearsightedness, and your eye surgeon feels that it is the best option for you, then SMILE is for you!
Plus, visual recovery takes a little bit longer than LASIK. After a LASIK procedure, a patient can experience immediate visual recovery, whereas SMILE’s visual recovery can take about one to two days.
If you want to learn more about SMILE vs LASIK and want a solution for your nearsightedness, contact Excel Laser Vision Institute at + (818) 907-8606 today.
Important Details to Know Before Deciding to Get Laser Eye Surgery
Our bodies become more susceptible to wear and tear as we get older – our joints become frailer, memory isn’t as sharp, and vision becomes blurry. For these issues, there are various solutions to focus on them. One of the more pioneering procedures to ever appear in the last few decades is laser eye surgery.
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What is a Laser Eye Procedure?
Many people ask about laser eye surgery costs because it is a very sought-after procedure since it is quick, safe, and painless. During a LASIK procedure, the LASIK surgeon creates a flap of tissue over the cornea and peels it back to have access to the cornea. Afterward, the laser will beam right into the eye to reshape the cornea, which is how the vision improves.
The whole procedure doesn’t take more than a minute. Once it is completed, the patient is given eye drops to ensure that their eyes don’t go dry.
Typically, LASIK surgery patients recover within 24 to 48 hours. This all depends on a person’s healing capabilities, but you can have peace of mind that you won’t have to wait a long time until you can see the world clearly again.
Who Should Get LASIK Surgery?
People who are sick and tired of wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses may want to go through LASIK surgery. This is a type of refractive eye surgery.
For the most part, many people who get laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) eye surgery attain 20/20 vision or better, which is sufficient for most activities. However, most people will still require glasses for driving at night or reading as they age.
LASIK has an excellent performance record. If there are ever complications that result in a loss of vision, they are rare, and many people are happy with their results. Specific side effects, especially dry eyes and temporary visual disturbances (such as glare), are fairly common. However, these usually clear up after a couple of weeks or months, and a minority of people think of them as long-term issues.
A person’s results rely on their refractive error and other factors. Those with mild nearsightedness usually have the most success with refractive surgery. Individuals with a high level of nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism have less predictable results.
Keep on reading about what to think about as you decide whether this surgery is suitable for you.
What Happens During LASIK?
There are quite a few variations of laser refractive surgery. LASIK is the most sought-after and most commonly performed eye surgery. Most of the time, the term “LASIK” is used to indicate all types of laser eye surgery.
Normally, images are focused on the retina that’s in the back of the eye. When it comes to nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism, they finish up being focused either in front of or behind the retina, ending in blurred vision.
- Nearsightedness (myopia) is a condition that lets you see objects nearby clearly, but objects that are far away appear blurry. When your eyeball is a little bit longer than normal or when the cornea curves too sharply, light rays focus in front of the retina and blur distant vision. A person can see objects that are close more clearly, but not those that are far away.
- Farsightedness (hyperopia) is a condition that lets you see objects far away clearly, but nearby objects are blurry. When you have a shorter than average eyeball or a cornea that is too flat, light focuses behind the retina rather than on it. This blurs near vision and occasionally distant vision.
- Astigmatism results in overall blurry vision. When the cornea curves or flattens unevenly, the outcome is astigmatism, which interrupts the focus of near and distant vision.
Normally, blurry vision is corrected by bending (refracting) light rays with glasses or contact lenses. Nevertheless, reshaping the cornea (the dome-shaped transparent tissue at the front of your eye) itself can provide the necessary refraction and vision correction
Prior to a LASIK procedure, your LASIK eye surgeon will determine the detailed measurements of your eye and assess the eye’s overall health. Your eye surgeon may ask you to take a mild sedative medication just before the procedure.
Eye-numbing drops will be administered once you are lying comfortably on an operating table. Then he or she will use a unique type of cutting laser to alter the curvature of your cornea accurately.
Whenever the laser beam sends a pulse, a very small amount of corneal tissue is taken off, allowing your eye surgeon to flatten the curve of your cornea or make it steeper.
Typically, an eye surgeon creates a flap in the cornea and then lifts it before reshaping it. Also, there are variations that involve a thin flap to be raised or no flap is used at all. Nonetheless, each technique has its pros and cons.
What are the Kinds of Laser Eye Procedures?
Every LASIK eye surgeon may specialize in specific types of laser eye procedures. Their differences are usually small, and none are clearly better than any others. Depending on your individual situation and preferences, you may consider:
- 1. Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK): It’s the most commonly performed eye laser surgery, LASIK involves making a partial-thickness corneal flap and utilizing an excimer laser to ablate the bed of the cornea. The flap is then put back into its original position. Discomfort after surgery is very little, and vision recovery usually takes place in 1 to 2 days.
- 2. Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK): With PRK, instead of creating a flap, the top surface (epithelium) is scraped away. This corneal abrasion takes three or four days to heal, and the outcome is moderate pain and blurred vision in the short term.
It was considered that these disadvantages were canceled out by the theoretical advantage that PRK was safer for those who are more likely to be stuck in the eye — for instance, those involved in law enforcement, military, or contact sports. However, even with standard LASIK, the risk of eyeball rupture is still very low, so there is probably no significant advantage with PRK. Additionally, LASIK is a better option than PRK for correcting more severe nearsightedness (myopia).
3. Laser-Assisted Subepithelial Keratectomy (LASEK): LASEK is no different from LASIK surgery, but the flap is made by using a special cutting device (microkeratome) and exposing the cornea to ethanol. The procedure lets the surgeon remove less of the cornea, making it a good option for those who have thin corneas. LASEK does not have any considerable advantages over LASIK for individuals at greater risk of eye injuries.
4. Epithelial Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis (epi-LASIK): In an epi-LASIK procedure, your laser eye surgeon separates the epithelium from the middle part of the cornea called the stroma) using a mechanized blunt blade device known as an epikeratome and reshapes the cornea with a laser. This procedure is similar to LASEK.
5. Small-Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE): This is a more contemporary type of refractive surgery that allows the eye surgeon to reshape the cornea. To do this, the surgeon uses a laser to make a lens-shaped bit of tissue known as the lenticule which is located below the cornea surface. When the lenticule has been used to reshape the cornea, it is then removed through a very small incision.
6. Intraocular Lenses: A laser eye surgeon can use surgically inserted corrective lenses in the eye, which are also known as intraocular lenses) to enhance vision. It’s normally carried out as part of cataract surgery, which involves removing the old, cloudy natural lens. Additionally, it may be an alternative to LASIK for older adults who may require cataract surgery in the future.
Younger people with high levels of nearsightedness that cannot be properly treated with corrective lenses may be offered intraocular lenses. However, these are not a typical options for most people.
7. Bioptics: Bioptics uses one or more techniques, such as intraocular lenses and LASIK, to treat nearsightedness or farsightedness.
If you want to discover more about LASIK procedures, contact Excel Laser Vision Institute at (310) 905-8622. A member from our dedicated team will be happy to answer all your questions about the type of refractive surgery that is best suited for you!
3 Preparation Tips for Best Results when Getting Laser Eye Surgery
An increasing number of people in southern California who experience vision problems are now turning to Orange County LASIK surgery to finally get the clear vision that they have always dreamed of. Although the actual procedure only takes up to 15 minutes, that doesn’t exempt you from needing to prepare for it. Here are the best steps you can take to prepare yourself for your operation, straight from our team to our valued patients:
Be Realistic. Understand What LASIK Can and Cannot Achieve
Familiarizing yourself with the entire process, from pre-surgery to aftercare, will make you feel more confident walking into your appointment. This particular type of laser eye surgery is designated to alter the shape of your cornea so that you can see more clearly, but it is not right for every patient. For instance, if you have excessively dry eyes or have a more serious and permanent vision impairment, the doctor can deny performing the procedure on you. In order to evaluate your candidacy, you will undergo a comprehensive eye examination, and the doctor will decide which strategy will be best for you.
Select a Highly-Skilled and Experienced Specialist
Selecting a LASIK surgeon who has extensive experience in his profession will ensure you get the best results for your money and your eye health. You want to choose somebody who knows exactly what they are doing, and you will be able to fully trust.
Plan Well Ahead of Time
While you can opt for LASIK surgery as long as you are at least 18 years old and have been approved by an ophthalmologist, a stable prescription lasting for a minimum of 2 years is required prior to your operation. Ask as many questions as possible during your consultation appointment, write them down and bring them to the office if it helps you remember all of them. If any new questions arise in between appointments, contact your doctor right away. Never wait until the last minute to ask important questions about your procedure.
Inform your employer in advance of your LASIK surgery so you may get a couple of days off from work. If you are still in school, you may want to consider scheduling your operation during a break so that you will not have to miss any of your classes. You should be prepared to feel discomfort following surgery, such as slight itching, burning, or watering. This is why you must plan to have somebody you trust drop you off and pick you up from the surgery ahead of time since you will not be allowed to drive.
Are You Ready to Change Your Life with LASIK?
Are you interested in LASIK but uncertain where exactly to start? If so, please reach out to our Brea office today to schedule your free consultation appointment! Our doctor can answer any questions you have, whether it be regarding your candidacy or the cost of laser eye surgery.
Preparation Tips before Undergoing LASIK Eye Surgery To Ensure Success
Dr. Ferzaad Moosa, a LASIK Orange County eye surgeon explains to us that LASIK eye surgery can help you deal with various visual issues, such as farsightedness, nearsightedness, astigmatism, and other conditions. For the most part, patients who do not have any serious eye or health issues are eligible for LASIK eye surgery. Nonetheless, you should always check with your LASIK eye surgeon before booking your LASIK procedure.
Once you find out you are a good candidate for laser eye surgery, there are things you have to do and stop doing. So, before you start to make plans for the life you’re going to have after your LASIK vision correction surgery, you have to take a look at this way to prepare before your procedure.
Drink a Lot of Water Before the Procedure
Prior to any procedure, you should drink more water unless you were told otherwise by your physician. However, with LASIK you are doing good when you increase your water intake. Boosting your water intake will help you keep hydrated and encourage the healing process after your procedure.
A typical side effect of LASIK eye surgery is temporary dry eye. Therefore, drinking more water is an easy way to help keep your eyes lubricated. If you have already booked your LASIK procedure, it’s time to start getting hydrated. Set your sights on at least 8 eight-ounce glasses per day. It sounds like a lot but that is the ideal minimum amount you should be drinking to keep hydrated.
Stop Wearing Contact Lenses
Before you have your LASIK procedure, your eye surgeon will instruct you to stop wearing contact lenses for at least a week for soft contacts and one month for hard contacts. The reason being is that wearing contacts can change the shape of your cornea and influence the results of your LASIK procedure.
It’s imperative that you give your eyes a break and switch over to eyeglasses for a while before your procedure.
Your eye doctor will be the person to let you know when to stop wearing contact lenses. It will be based on an evaluation of your eyes, and from there he or she will let you know exactly how long before your eye laser procedure to stop contact lens use.
Get a Comfortable Outfit Ready in Advance
It’s important to decide in advance what you wear to the LASIK procedure. Keep in mind that you will be awake during the surgery, so it’s important to feel comfortable in the clothes you’re in. Go with loose clothes that you can easily remove once you get back home.
For instance, this could be athletic shorts, leggings, a zipper hoodie, or a soft t-shirt. After a LASIK procedure, the first thing you will do when you get home is sleep. It’s a lot easier to get to bed if you’re wearing clothes that you can rest in or that you can easily change out of.
Furthermore, try not to wear clothes that produce lint. So, avoid faux fur or wearing any type of clothing that may be shed. This is important since it helps to keep contaminants away from the operating suite. LASIK is a safe and sterile procedure, but it’s a good idea to make that additional effort to avoid lint when you can as well.
Get a Person to Be Your Designated Driver
When you are doing a LASIK procedure, you are not put to sleep. Instead, your eye surgeon will put numbing drops in your eyes. If you are feeling nervous about the procedure, you may be given medication to help you relax.
The numbing drops ensure you never feel any pain when you’re undergoing LASIK. Eventually, these drops wear off after a few hours once the procedure is completed.
Even though no anesthesia is involved in a LASIK procedure, you are not supposed to drive home yourself afterward. Get a friend or a family member that can drive you to your procedure and then drive you back home.
Many LASIK patients can drive during their follow-up appointment the next day. When you get confirmation from your eye doctor, you can return behind the wheel.
Go Through Your Paperwork
Your eye clinic will hand over a LASIK consent form before your procedure. Once you have read through your paperwork, the team will help you answer any further questions you may have regarding the LASIK procedure.
It’s important that patients make an informed decision about the procedure. Therefore, your questions can be about LASIK safety, financing, aftercare, or anything else. Your eye doctor should be happy to discuss them with you!
Don’t Wear Makeup, Perfume, or Lotions
When the day of your LASIK procedure arrives, don’t wear any makeup, perfumes, or lotions. You should take a shower and make sure your face is squeaky clean with absolutely no contaminates the morning of the big day! Don’t forget to skip on any perfumes as well.
Also, don’t put on any hand or face lotions, since this can make your skin oily. You will want to enter your LASIK procedure clean and prepared, and wearing greasy lotions can get into your eyes. Having a successful LASIK procedure is also about being safe.
After your LASIK eye surgery, you will need a day to rest before getting back to your regular activities. Then, you’ll be over the moon to wake up the next day following your procedure with sharp, clear vision.
There is only one factor you will regret about LASIK and that is you will wish you had gotten the procedure done sooner. So, get ready for a life free from eyeglasses and contacts.
Do you live in the Los Angeles or Orange County areas? Contact the professional and dedicated team at Excel Laser Vision Institute as soon as possible to book your free LASIK consultation today!
Can You Undergo a Cataract Surgery After Having a LASIK Eye Surgery?
Cataract surgery and LASIK eye surgery are two different methods to correct the eye, and no matter whether the procedure is performed at the LASIK Orange County clinic or somewhere else in the world, these two procedures will ultimately improve a person’s vision. Nevertheless, their similarity ends there, seeing that LASIK and cataract surgery are two separate procedures that fix two completely different eye health issues.
LASIK repairs vision issues such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism by reshaping the cornea of the eye. On the contrary, cataract surgery enhances vision by replacing the eye’s lens that has become cloudy because of aging or other factors.
What would happen if you both have these vision issues? Due to the fact that both surgeries would change the eyes dramatically, someone might believe that they only have to select one of the above to avoid any future complications.
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Can You Undergo Cataract Surgery After LASIK Surgery?
You are probably dying to ask a LASIK surgeon like Doctor Moosa if you had LASIK surgery as a young adult, are you eligible for cataract surgery later in life? And the answer is yes, you can. If you are someone who has had LASIK, you can indeed have cataract surgery, if needed, in the future. However, this can only happen in this order. However, someone who has had cataract surgery, in many instances, is no longer eligible for LASIK or other refractive surgeries.
The Differences Between LASIK Surgery And Cataract Surgery?
To get a better awareness of the reason behind the fact that someone can have cataract surgery after LASIK surgery, it’s important to understand how both procedures work.
LASIK eye surgery and other refractive surgeries are carried out on the cornea, which is the dome-shaped, clear tissue that is on the front of the eye. During LASIK eye surgery, a laser changes the shape of the cornea so it refracts, or bends, light waves more accurately onto the retina (the light-sensitive tissue lining the back inner portion of the eyeball), giving the outcome of clearer vision.
On the other hand, cataract surgery is performed on the eye’s natural lens, which is positioned just behind the iris (the colored part of the eye). The lens’s job is to focus the light that goes through the eye onto the retina to create a sharp, crisp image.
A healthy lens should be transparent and clear. Patients who have cataracts experience a clouding of the lens which disrupts normal vision. When a cataract surgeon performs cataract surgery, the cloudy natural lens is removed and replaced with a synthetic lens, enhancing the clarity of a person’s vision.
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Cataract Surgery Without Having Had LASIK
During cataract surgery, an artificial replacement lens is created to correct vision and replace prescription glasses. For patients who have not had refractive surgery, vision correction through cataract surgery is usually very straightforward and has a foreseeable outcome.
Once cataract surgery is completed, many patients experience clear distance vision without requiring eyeglasses, even though many will still require their reading glasses.
Cataract Surgery After LASIK Surgery
Nowadays, LASIK surgery is performed using modern equipment that takes precise measurements of the eyes. Nevertheless, it is still highly advisable for individuals who have had LASIK surgery to let their eye surgeon know all of their previous eye health history so that the correct lens implant be used for cataract surgery. If you don’t have any records of your previous eye health history, you can request them from the doctor who performed your LASIK surgery. If you can’t get these records, cataract surgery is still an option, however, the postoperative refractive error may not be as certain.
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What Is LASIK Surgery?
Many people know LASIK surgery as a laser refractive surgery that helps to correct vision problems. LASIK (laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis) is a common alternative to wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses.
During LASIK surgery, an eye surgeon uses a special type of cutting laser to precisely reshape the dome-shaped clear tissue at the front of the eye (cornea) to enhance vision.
When eyes have normal vision, the cornea bends (refracts) light accurately onto the retina at the back of the eye. However, with nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia), or astigmatism, the light is bent the wrong way, and as a result of this, a person experiences a blurred vision.
A person can wear eyeglasses or contact lenses to correct their vision, but changing the shape of the cornea will also give the refraction needed for better, clearer eyesight.
Why Is LASIK Surgery Performed?
When a person asks for LASIK eye surgery cost, they may be looking into correcting one of these vision problems:
Nearsightedness (myopia). When a person’s eyeball is slightly longer than normal or when the cornea curves too strongly, light rays focus in front of the retina and blur distant vision. The person can see objects that are close very clearly, but not those that are far away.
Farsightedness (hyperopia). When a person has a shorter than average eyeball or a cornea that is too flat, light focuses behind the retina rather than on it. This makes near vision and in some instances distant vision, blurry.
Astigmatism. When the cornea curves or flattens unevenly, a person experiences astigmatism, which interrupts the focus of near and distant vision.
What Are the Risks Of LASIK?
It is very rare for someone to experience loss of vision because of LASIK surgery. However, there are specific side effects of LASIK eye surgery, especially dry eyes and temporary visual issues such as glare are pretty common.
These side effects usually go away after a few weeks or months, and very few people think of them as being a long-term issue.
Here are a few side effects to expect after LASIK surgery.
- Dry eyes
- Glare, halos and double vision
- Under corrections
- Overcorrections
- Astigmatism
- Flap problems
- Regression
- Vision loss or changes
If you are thinking about LASIK surgery, you most likely wear spectacles or contact lenses. Contact the professional eye care team at Excel Laser Vision Institute, which will guide you through LASIK surgery, cataract surgery, and any other type of refractive procedure that will work best for you.