Laser Vision Corrective Eye Surgery – A Comparative Analysis of Procedures

Medical technology has advanced by so many leaps and bounds that there are now a host of laser vision corrective eye surgery remedies for those who find wearing contact lenses and glasses tiresome.

Which corrective eye surgery you choose should largely depend on your confidence in the procedure and the amount of pain and discomfort you are willing to tolerate.

Below is a comparative rundown of some of the latest corrective eye surgery procedures.

LASIK (Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis)

What It Is: A type of corrective eye surgery that is generally painless, lasts 10 to 15 minutes per eye, and corrects the patient's vision immediately.

How It Works: A microkeratome (very fine metal blade with a suction and fixed-depth plate to ensure accuracy) is used to create a corneal flap. The flap is lifted, exposing the cornea's middle layer (stroma), which the laser then reshapes. The flap is put back.

Level of Pain (when no complication is involved): Slight to no pain. Some discomfort may be felt when corneal flap is lifted back.

IntraLASIK

What It Is: An enhancement on the LASIK procedure where a thinner flap is created by laser, instead of a metal blade (as in LASIK).

How It Works: A femtosecond laser microkeratome makes a series of very small bubbles in the cornea. The laser creates a flap. The flap is lifted, exposing the cornea's middle layer (stroma), which the laser then reshapes. The flap is put back.

Level of Pain (when no complication is involved): The same as LASIK, but it takes one minute for the laser to create the flap, as compared to seconds with the microkeratome blade.

PRK (Photorefractive Keratectomy)

What It Is: The first corrective eye surgery procedure created to sculpt and reshape the cornea by means of a laser (the same kind used for LASIK).

How It Works: The cornea's top layer (epithelium) is scraped away. This exposes the cornea's middle layer (stroma), which the laser then reshapes.

Level of Pain (when no complication is involved): Slight to moderate pain and discomfort, although it does not involve cutting out a corneal flap (as in LASIK)

LASEK (Laser-Assisted Sub-Epithelial Keratomileusis)

What It Is: A newer form of PRK that involves a faster healing time.

How It Works: Alcohol is used to soften and remove the epithelium. This exposes the cornea's middle layer (stroma), which the laser then reshapes.

Level of Pain (when no complication is involved): Slight to moderate pain and discomfort.

Epi-LASEK

What It Is: A modification on the LASEK corrective eye surgery procedure that uses a “separator,” reduces the discomfort of alcohol (as in LASEK), and involves even faster healing time.

How It Works: It uses a separator to maintain a living layer of the cornea's surface (epithelium), the laser then reshapes the cornea's middle layer (stroma). The epithelium is replaced.

Level of Pain (when no complication is involved): Slight pain and discomfort.