A large percentage of the population experiences problems with their eyesight as they age. For some, their eyesight deteriorates at childhood, with some children needing corrective lenses due to genetic or hereditary vision problems. In most, however, conditions such as myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism occur later in their lives. Men and women with these concerns know that it can be bothersome and may interfere with their occupations and the normal discharge of many everyday activities. Contact lenses and corrective lenses have been successful in the past and continue to be the popular option today, but the discomforts associated with their use have led people to seek more permanent alternatives. Luckily for the vision challenged, laser eye surgery has improved by leaps and bounds since the start of its use in the 1980’s. To date, 92 to 98 percent of treated patients have reported perfect to near perfect vision after undergoing laser eye corrective surgery and the numbers are still improving.

The root technique utilized in laser eye surgery is known as Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK). In this procedure, an ultraviolet Excimer laser is used to ablate or remove small portions of tissue on the exterior of the cornea to reshape the epithelium, enabling the eye to focus light better and provide clearer vision. This technique was used exclusively from the 1970’s until another procedure was patented in 1989. This newer technique called for cutting a thin flap on the cornea using a microkeratome blade going deeper to the corneal bed. PRK would then be applied to this area. The combination procedure was coined LASIK in 1991 and is now the most popular refractive surgical procedure having been used on millions of patients worldwide.

Patients who have considered or would like to undergo laser corrective eye surgery should be aware of the side effects associated with both the basic PRK and the LASIK procedures. PRK may take up to several weeks to heal, and patients tend to complain of mild scratchiness. A small percentage of patients have also experienced night haze (glare or light halos), dry eyes, and myopic recurrence. These are all easily treated, however with post-procedure medication, and doctors will check on you regularly to see if the corneal epithelium is healing properly.

In spite of being relatively safe, the popular LASIK technique has its share of problems as well, due to being a hybrid surgery. Despite being more comfortable for patients than the older PRK method due to a much quicker recovery period, more cases of higher order eye aberrations have been reported. Most of these complications arise from the flap incision on the surface of the cornea. The flap may be cut too thinly or too thickly resulting in an irregularly shaped eye and complications can cause irregular astigmatism, inflammation, and bulging of the surface of the eye. Like other procedures requiring great precision, these are all problems that are not inherent to the surgery itself, but involve the competence and experience of the performing surgeon.

It is suggested that in the first place much thought and care be put in finding a quality doctor for your struggling eyes. Licensing, board certification and a membership to the American College of Surgeons are good signs to check for. An excellent doctor will diagnose your problems more effectively and assure that you are given the right care and the necessary prescriptions after surgery. He will also do a proper dilation test to check if your pupils are too large for the LASIK procedure. In such a case the ophthalmologist may recommend that a patient undergo the older PRK surgery instead.