LASIK

Custom Wavefront Lasik

Many patients have reduced their dependence on eyeglasses and contact lenses over the past several years with the refractive surgery procedure known as Lasik. This procedure can correct errors in sight such as nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. Today there is an enhanced version of Lasik known as custom wavefront Lasik. Custom wavefront Lasik allows eye surgeons to customize the procedure for each individual eye, providing the possibility of even better vision after the surgery.

Adapted from technology used years ago by astronomers, custom wavefront Lasik consists of an array of microsensors and a laser. A harmless wave of light from a laser beam is sent through the eye to the retina. This light is reflected back out of the eye off the retina, and the sensor in the computer measures the differences at the front of the wave of light as it leaves the eye. This records a precise three-dimensional map of the refractive errors in the eye, including the errors in the cornea. Many people may have the same eyeglass prescription, but because the human eye is like a fingerprint, no two people have the same custom wavefront Lasik measurements.

The custom wavefront data is translated into a mathematical formula the surgeon uses to program patterns into the ultraviolet cold laser, which is used to reshape the cornea. Custom wavefront Lasik technology also corrects the higher-order errors that can cause glare, haloes and blurry images that might have occurred with the older laser eye surgery. Higher-order errors are distortions in the eye that can only be detected with a custom wavefront analysis.

Custom wavefront Lasik surgery may not be for every patient however because the procedure removes more corneal tissue than the conventional Lasik technique. Patients with thin corneas, high degrees of refractive error, severely dry eyes or diseases that affect the lens or the fluid inside the eye may not be good candidates. However, many of these patients may still be able to receive the conventional Lasik procedure.

Having a custom wavefront examination will help your doctor determine if you are a candidate for the custom wavefront Lasik procedure. Be sure to check your doctors' credentials, speak to patients that have had the procedure at that particular office and insist that all of your question or concerns are addressed. Even though this procedure is done on an out patient basis and takes only a few minutes, it is still surgery. Custom wavefront Lasik has become very safe and is the most accurate form of corrective eye surgery but as with any procedure there are risks and benefits. Talk to your doctor about all of these and all of the options available.