Fixing cornea and retina problems
People who have suffered from poor vision their entire lives know all too well that their troubles usually stem from the shape of their cornea. Depending on the shape of the cornea, light is not clearly seen, causing an array of vision problems. Other people may suffer from problems with their retinas. These problems may include glaucoma, weak blood vessels, or other damage. Thankfully, technology has advanced to a point where most of these issues can be resolved through different types of eye surgery.
Fixing the Cornea
Most laser surgeries deal with reshaping the cornea in order to improve vision. There are a variety of options with regard to reshaping the cornea. Here are a few:
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Lasik Surgery
Lasik is a form of eye surgery where the doctor cuts a hinged flap on the eye's surface and folds it back to reveal the cornea. Then the doctor will use laser energy to reshape the cornea in a way that improves whatever vision issue is suffered from. This surgery is fairly straight forward, and can cause dry eyes during recovery. However, technology has played with different techniques while still accomplishing similar results.
Lasek Surgery
Lasek is a form of Lasik that similarly cuts away the outer layer of the eye. However, instead of using a special tool to fold the layer back, Lasek applies alcohol to float the hinged layer out of the way. This similarly reveals the cornea to reshaping.
Epi-Lasek
Epi-Lasek is basically the same thing as Lasek, only instead of floating the hinged piece of the outer layer of the eye with alcohol, a special cutting tool is used to move the hinged layer out of the way. This again allows for the doctor to use a laser to reshape the cornea.
Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK)
Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK) is one of the oldest versions of vision repair cornea surgeries. While it lost popularity when new technologies were created, it has started to regain popularity because of the quicker recovery time. This technique involves using a laser to remove tissue directly from the eye's surface to change the curvature of the cornea. As a result, the person's vision is improved.
Retina Surgery
The retina is another part of the eye that often requires surgical attention to repair a problem. As a response to this issue, technology has made several advances to provide several options for retina repair.
Argon Laser Treatment
Argon Laser Treatment has been used since 1980 to repair retina damage, and relieve intraocular pressure. The technique involves applying a mirrored contact lens to the cornea so that the doctor can view the anterior portion of the eye. Then, the doctor actually burns parts of the tissue to relieve pressure inside the eye. In three-quarters of the procedures, pressure is actually relieved.
No matter the type of vision ailment a person is suffering from, technology has rapidly advanced to offer fairly safe procedures with quick recovery time to help improve vision and repair damaged retinas. Patients may choose from many forms of Lasik surgery or have Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK) to repair a misshaped cornea. Or, a person may go with Argon Laser Treatment to help repair damaged retinas. No longer will people need to undergo complex and dangerous surgeries to have their eyes repaired.
