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How
does the Lasik laser procedure work? |
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All vision
disorders for which glasses have to be used are measured in terms of sphere or cylinder or
a combination of both. The best-corrected vision is termed 6/6. In simple Lasik, the
sphere and cylinder power of a person' eye is fed into the memory of the laser machine,
and the laser then corrects the error. This means that myopia of -2.0 will be corrected in
the same way in all individuals with this error.
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How is C -
lasik betters than simple lasik laser ? |
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It is now
known that sphere and cylinder constitute about 90-92% of the visual disorders in an
optical system of a human eye. The rest is attributed to higher order aberrations.
Correction of these aberrations along with the usual spherical and cylinder power of the
eye result in a better sharpness and quality of vision. These higher order aberrations
along with the usual sphere and cylinder errors can now be measured and documented with
the help of a special machine called an aberrometer (OPD scan-Nidek). This machine
measures 1440 data points on the eye, records this data in the form of eye maps and the
laser beam then corrects these optical errors. Thus C-Lasik is a personalized program and
would be different for every eye.
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What is the
spectacle number that can be corrected by Lasik? |
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-1.0 to -18.0
+1.0 to +8.0
This includes spherical and cylindrical combinations. The limits of correction will vary
in different individuals depending on the thickness of the cornea.
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What are the
minimum requirements? |
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The person should be
at least 18 years of age and should not have a significant increase in the prescribed
power of spectacles in the past one year. Pregnant Women may not be suitable candidates.
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How is Lasik
laser performed? |
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Lasik involves
extensive computer analysis of the eye. The spectacle user is then asked to come on the
scheduled day for the laser treatment. Local anaesthetic eye drops are instilled in the
eye to achieve a pain free procedure. The patient is now made to lie under the laser
machine and asked to fix his gaze at a red light. The data of the patient is fed into the
computer memory of the laser. A special machine called the microkeratome is used to pick
up a thin corneal flap of 160 microns (equivalent to an onion skin). Laser is delivered to
the cornea under this flap to correct the spectacle number. It takes 20 to 60 seconds to
complete the laser delivery to one eye. The corneal flap is placed back in position where
it holds strongly within two minutes due to its natural bonding properties. The entire
procedure takes about 10 minutes.
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Does the
procedure hurt? |
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The laser procedure
itself does not hurt. A slight pressure may be felt during the procedure. There is a
possibility of some degree of discomfort after the procedure for 3 to 4 hours which is
easily controlled by medication.
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Will I be
totally free from spectacles? |
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95% of the people
will be totally free from their spectacles. 5% will have mild variation from their zero
targeted correction due to varying healing patterns in different individuals, but will
have their dependency reduced on spectacles. With a little more lasering without any extra
fee, an attempt may be made after 6 months to correct these individuals further.
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Are the
results achieved from Lasik permanent? |
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The effects of lasik
on the cornea are permanent. Sometimes, internal changes within an eye may come with age
and these may have some effect on the overall visual status. For example, a high myopia
may progress even after the age of 18 years, or a person may require reading glasses after
the age of forty like any normal individual.
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When can I
return to work? |
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After 2 to 3 days
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How safe is
this procedure? |
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Lasik is a very safe
procedure but like any other surgical procedure it can have some complications which are
extremely rare if a proper screening check is done prior to the procedure. This includes
measuring the corneal thickness with an ultrasound, mapping the corneal topography and a
retina check. Nobody in our surgical experience has ever lost sight due to this procedure.
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What is the
worst possible complication? |
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Infection is a
serious complication and could lead to deterioration of the cornea. Infection is usually
rare and can be well controlled with medications with little or no loss of quality of
vision. At our centre, we have had no case of infection till date.
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How would
the eye behave after 10 to 20 years? |
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The medical
community can only speak of the future by accessing the data from the surgeries performed
within the last ten years. The data reveals a very positive healing response of the eye
giving doctors no reason to be concerned about effects beyond ten years.
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Can both
eyes be done the same day? |
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Yes, in most of the
cases. However one eye may be done at a time by choice.
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When can I
drive? |
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A patient is legal
to drive when one eye is seeing 6/9 or better. In practical terms drive when you are
comfortable with the newly set vision.
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How long
will I be on medications? |
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Generally speaking a
patient is on eye drops for 3 to 6 weeks. This is dependant of the level of correction
attempted and the individual healing response.
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Have any
doctors had Lasik correction themselves? |
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Yes, many in India
as well in several other countries. This also includes several eye specialists.
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Can I wear
spectacles or contact lenses after Lasik surgery? |
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If the need arises
they can be used.
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If I am over
50 years, will the surgery still work for me? |
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Each of your eyes
has two lenses - the cornea ( the general focusing lens ) and the inside lens ( the fine
focusing lens ). Laser surgery works effectively to correct the general focusing lens, no
matter what your age. However, the inside fine focusing lens of your eye hardens and no
longer provides clear reading vision after the age of 45 years. So, even after laser
surgery, you would need reading glasses after 45 years of age. However, laser surgery will
give you clear vision for all distance activities without spectacles.
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What is the
cost of the procedure? |
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To make the
procedure more affordable, we have been able to bring down the cost of Lasik laser to
Rupees 18000/- and for C-lasik to 24000/- for both the eyes.
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What are the
other procedures for the removal of spectacles? |
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The first popular procedure
was Radial Keratotomy also called the Russian technique .Here radial cuts were given on
the cornea, 4 to 12 in number, by diamond knife and this was able to correct 3 to 6
dioptre of myopia. Whereas 70% of the people enjoyed freedom from spectacles, 30% had mild
to total reversal of there spectacle number. Higher accuracy and higher spectacle number
correction was achieved with the introduction of the Excimer laser but some cases of
central corneal haze were reported. Lasik Laser over came this problem and also made the
recovery faster, safer and painless.
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Is cataract
also treatable by Lasik laser? |
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No, cataract is
treatable by Phaco (Stitchless surgery)
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