August 2022 Edition
Refractive Procedures
“Laser eye surgery” is something we’ve all probably heard about, but what exactly does it mean? Lasers are involved in many different types of eye surgeries, both elective and medically necessary, but usually this refers to an elective refractive surgery like LASIK, PRK, or others.
These also are terms you may have heard. Based on what you’ve heard, chances are you either have a good, bad, or curious opinion on them.
Let me attempt to clear up some confusion.
I’ll start with a brief lesson. Your prescription is based mostly on the cornea (the clear structure on the front of the eye). Refractive surgeries manipulate the cornea with the goal being to focus light correctly in the back of the eye so you can see clearly without the need for glasses or contacts. The procedure itself is relatively short, painless, and has great outcomes the majority of the time. This advent has truly been remarkable for patients’ visual needs.
Even if you do not wear glasses or contacts, you probably still love options. This spills over into the world of vision as well. Whether you own multiple pairs of glasses, switch it up with contact lenses, or have even had a refractive surgery yourself and now just wear sunglasses - we all love to have choices. This is what refractive surgery boils down to in my book; an option (in most cases).
The reality is, there are some people that are simply not candidates for refractive surgery. This has to do with anatomy, presence of ocular diseases, systemic conditions, age, and quite frankly, expectations. For this group, the good news is there are more options for soft and specialty contact lenses now than ever before, and the same goes for frames and spectacle lenses.
If you are curious about yourself being qualified for refractive surgery, great, now what? Well, I would recommend getting more information. Where better to start, and who better to go to than the person who has examined and kept a record on your eyes and ocular health over the past years? Your eyecare provider.
Individualized, non-biased healthcare, is non-negotiable for me. Even if you are qualified you still may not be the best candidate. You may think you are not qualified based on what someone told you in the past when you in fact may be a great candidate. These are all questions that can be addressed at your consultation appointment. From there, an open and honest discussion can take place to make a joint decision for the best plan for care.
“Laser eye surgery” is something we’ve all probably heard about, but what exactly does it mean? Lasers are involved in many different types of eye surgeries, both elective and medically necessary, but usually this refers to an elective refractive surgery like LASIK, PRK, or others.
These also are terms you may have heard. Based on what you’ve heard, chances are you either have a good, bad, or curious opinion on them.
Let me attempt to clear up some confusion.
I’ll start with a brief lesson. Your prescription is based mostly on the cornea (the clear structure on the front of the eye). Refractive surgeries manipulate the cornea with the goal being to focus light correctly in the back of the eye so you can see clearly without the need for glasses or contacts. The procedure itself is relatively short, painless, and has great outcomes the majority of the time. This advent has truly been remarkable for patients’ visual needs.
Even if you do not wear glasses or contacts, you probably still love options. This spills over into the world of vision as well. Whether you own multiple pairs of glasses, switch it up with contact lenses, or have even had a refractive surgery yourself and now just wear sunglasses - we all love to have choices. This is what refractive surgery boils down to in my book; an option (in most cases).
The reality is, there are some people that are simply not candidates for refractive surgery. This has to do with anatomy, presence of ocular diseases, systemic conditions, age, and quite frankly, expectations. For this group, the good news is there are more options for soft and specialty contact lenses now than ever before, and the same goes for frames and spectacle lenses.
If you are curious about yourself being qualified for refractive surgery, great, now what? Well, I would recommend getting more information. Where better to start, and who better to go to than the person who has examined and kept a record on your eyes and ocular health over the past years? Your eyecare provider.
Individualized, non-biased healthcare, is non-negotiable for me. Even if you are qualified you still may not be the best candidate. You may think you are not qualified based on what someone told you in the past when you in fact may be a great candidate. These are all questions that can be addressed at your consultation appointment. From there, an open and honest discussion can take place to make a joint decision for the best plan for care.