LASIK LASER EYE SURGERY

LASIK - Advantages, Risks and Complications

Advantages:

• Bowman's layer is spared.
• No removal of the corneal surface tissue is necessary and therefore post-operative pain is substantially reduced.
• Post-operative visual acuity is restored within a few days rather than weeks.
• Eyedrops are usually discontinued after one week.
• Stability usually occurs within one to three months.
• Less corneal scarring in the long term, less change due to healing (regression) and thus greater stability of the correction. A key advantage of the LASIK procedure, especially for patients with a high degree of myopia, where a large amount of Excimer Laser ablation would be necessary.
• LASIK allows correction of myopia, astigmatism, and hyperopia in the corneal bed, underneath the flap.

Risks and Complications:
When comparing only the benefits of LASIK over PRK the first impression is that LASIK has the potential to be a superior procedure. There is however, a very significant list of potential LASIK complications or risks and these include, but are not limited to:

• Failure of automated instrument to leave a hinge on the corneal flap with
  the first incision.
• Loss of the corneal flap during the operation.
• Loss of the corneal flap after the operation.
• Slipping of the flap and healing off center.
• First incision too deep (perforation of the eye) or too shallow,
  causing a hole in the flap.
• Invasion of the surface tissue into the central tissue of the cornea.
• Infection of the cornea.
• Loss of visual acuity - from scarring or from induced corneal shape change (spherical aberration).
• Technical problems with complex "flap" cutting devices (keratomes).
• The LASIK procedure is dependent upon the surgeon's operating skills, as well as the computerized precision of the excimer laser being used.