[Kde-i18n-vi] Dr William Boothe - Understanding The Lasik Procedure

[paul.kholer paul.kholer]

 Lasik eye surgery  one of the most popular elective procedures performed
today continues to grow in popularity as more and more people choose to
leave their eyeglasses and contact lenses in the dust and embrace clearer
vision through advanced surgical procedures.

The Lasik procedure is one that had its start in a myriad of technological
breakthroughs dating back to the late 1940s but did not come together into
the procedure we know today until 1990. The Lasik procedure as we know it
today was first performed in the United States in 1991.

Lasik itself stands for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis and is a
combination of several technologies developed throughout the years. It
essence, Lasik is refractive eye surgery wherein corrections are made to the
way in which our eyes refract or bend  light.

In a normally functioning eye, light is received through the lens of the
eye  the segment located directly behind the colored part or iris - of the
eye. Once the lens receives light it then refracts or bends to the retina of
the eye  found in the grouping of cells lining the back of the eye. From
there, the retina converts these light signals into a message that it can
deliver to the optic nerve in our brain. The optic nerve receives these
signals as a visual image or picture.

Through heredity, illness, injury, or aging our eyes can experience
refractive difficulties in the way of nearsightedness, farsightedness, and
astigmatism, among other conditions. When this occurs light is not refracted
properly and eventually the message or signal that the optic nerve receives
is translated into a blurry image.

During the Lasik procedure surgeons use laser technology to resurface the
cornea  the transparent covering of the eye  thus clearing the way for
crisper, cleaner refraction of light. The Lasik procedure should always
begin with the proper choosing of a surgical center through comprehensive
research. The surgeon who will perform the procedure will ordinarily begin
with one or two pre-operative visits during which time candidacy for the
procedure is determined and overall health is assessed.

The Lasik procedure itself begins with the numbing of the eye with the use
of eye drops. Once the eye is numbed, the patient is asked to lie on his/her
back and the eye itself is held open with a speculum that is placed on the
upper and lower eyelids. The eye is then immobilized with the use of a
corneal suction ring. Once the eye is immobilized the surgeon makes a very
small incision in the top layer of the cornea in order to create a flap.

The flap is then folded back to reveal the mid-section of the cornea  known
as the stroma. The surgeon then used low-powered laser technology to
resurface the stroma after which the flap is replaced over the eye. The
procedure itself takes very little time usually no more than 10 minutes for
each eye.

Healing begins immediately and happens naturally. Most patients report
little to no discomfort during the Lasik procedure and only mild discomfort
following it  which generally disappears within 24 hours following the
surgery.
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