The eye has two natural “lenses”, the cornea and the lens, which are responsible for focusing images on the retina. When the eye is myopic this approach is performed by the “front” of the retina, resulting in a blurred retinal image.
In the correction of myopia the laser will act on the cornea or on the crystalline lens, modifying the focus ability to form a sharp image on the retina.
When the laser acts on the cornea it changes the curvature of the anterior face decreasing its dioptric power.
When the laser acts on the lens, it allows the implant of an intraocular lens, with an appropriate dioptre power to correct myopia and other refractive defects that the patient could have.
The main corneal laser surgery techniques for myopia are the Epi-Lasek and Lasik.
The Lasik surgery is the most widely used technique globally. It is a completely painless procedure, which only lasts a few minutes and has a very quick recovery period. At the start of the intervention a flap is carved, below which the excimer laser is applied. This laser will sculpt the cornea to achieve an optimum curvature which eliminates the refractive error.
The main advantage of lasik is its quick recovery, which allows the patient to continue with his normal life the next day
The Epi-Lasek is the most advanced technological evolution of ancient PRK. It is also a completely painless and short procedure, but recovery is much slower. Unlike LASIK, a flap is not created in the cornea, but the laser is applied directly after the epithelium (outer layer of the cornea) has been removed.
The main advantage of epi-LASEK is that it can be applied in thin corneas.
When the laser myopia operation is performed on the lens we are talking about a laser operation with intraocular lens (Refractive Phacoplasty or Transparent Lens). The laser performs the corneal incisions and the capsulorhexis to implant the Premium intraocular lens. It is the most suitable technique for patients with some degree of lens opacity.
In most patients, with low or average graduation, the customised Lasik procedure is the best option. It is a technique that has evolved over the years, nowadays providing excellent results at all distances and with any level of ambient lighting. It is a proven and widely diffused technique that has been successfully applied to millions of people.
To perform the Lasik operation with guarantees you not only need to have a certain corneal thickness, but should also possess adequate topometric features. There are patients whose cornea thickness is normal but they are not good candidates for this intervention.
If the cornea is thin, the topometric indexes are inadequate or have a high number of dioptres, the personalized epilasek, the ICL lenses and the Premium Multifocal intraocular lenses are the best alternatives.
For those cases where there is any degree of opacity in the lens the best solution is the Premium Multifocal intraocular lens surgery. This operation will not only correct the dioptres the patient has but will also increase his visual quality by eliminating the opacity.
