By Louis Zhang

If Lasik is not right for your eyes, or the thought of it does not appeal to you. You may wish to consider contact lenses, Orthokeratology (Ortho-K), or, that old standby, eyeglasses. Not only are these options cheaper, but they might suit your lifestyle better and is less scary than surgery. All these methods have one thing in common and that is the benefit of reversibility.

Contact lens

Putting aside Lasik, there is a huge variety of contact lens designed for usual and special needs on the market today. They are now available in bifocal prescriptions. And, sensitive eyes now have the option of extra thin lenses. There are soft, comfortable lenses that you can discard after a day or a month, and rigid gas permeable lenses that can last years and provide sharper, clearer vision than soft lenses.

Soft lenses

This type of lens absorbs moisture and takes the shape of the eye with more ease. They are cheaper than rigid lenses, but more expensive in the long run.

Rigid Lenses

As for this type of lenses, they are more durable but take more time to get use to them. They are more resistant to buildup of deposits. Even lasik deals with astigmatism. With rigid contacts, you can differentiate between the left and right eyes and select toric lenses for astigmatism. News about the seven-day and 30-day continuous wear of lenses have recently been approved by the FDA.

What does Lasik do?

Basically, through surgery, they change the shape of the cornea. Ortho-K uses rigid gas permeable contact lenses to train the shape of the cornea. In both, this improves the eye’s ability to refract light and focus. Though the result isn’t permanent, with prolonged use, a person’s vision may improve drastically, up to 20/40 or even 20/20 vision.

Ortho-K therapy

In the beginning of this process, the contact lenses are worn about eight hours a day. After lasik, vision improvement occurs in days. With Ortho-K, as the cornea changes shape with time, the vision will keep on improving until the lenses are worn less and less each day. Unfortunately, stopping the use of Ortho-K lenses causes the corneas to revert back to their original state. And also, the effects of Lasik may fade, too.

The clarity of the vision may vary, and it may take several months to change the vision measurably. To get desired effect more rapidly, accelerated Ortho-K therapy may be used.

Stick with eyeglasses

If lasik and contact lenses are not for you, the only left possibility is to stick with your eyeglasses. Eyeglass frames are more durable, more flexible and come in many different shapes. Nowadays, lenses are made lighter and stronger with more scratch resistance. New options for glasses include tinting that changes faster, progressive bifocal lenses, anti-reflective coatings, UV protection and greater impact resistance.

Advantages

Some benefits you get from this is that they are less expensive than contact lenses or lasik surgery. They are easier to change and fashion-foward styling. The best thing is that the good eyesight that they have provided to you for years will continue indefinitely.

Conclusion

If you cannot have lasik surgery now, or even if you never choose to have that procedure, these are viable, safe, money-saving choices. Even if you decide to have lasik surgery in the future, choosing either contact lenses or Ortho-K therapy, or just your eyeglasses for now can keep you going until you make that decision.

Source: http://usalasikcenters.com/lasiks_non_surgical_alternatives.html

While LASIK is a relatively low risk surgery, bladeless LASIK eliminates the one area where most complications arise, the metal blade. Aside from the fear it strikes into the heart of those who fear traditional surgery, it still has a very human error rate in a very difficult low-percentage situation.

While many people who are rejected for LASIK are rejected for thin corneas, bladeless LASIK offers these people a second chance. IntraLase lasers offer a more controlled environment in the bladeless LASIK surgery. Instead of cutting through with a blade, the laser is guided by computer technology.

The IntraLase laser allows for more curvature during the bladeless LASIK surgery, reducing the margin for error. The fact that it is a laser and not a blade also lends to the idea of avoiding infections or contaminations. Bladeless LASIK prevents long-term recovery that accompanies most surgeries.

Prior to LASIK a lot of people had unsafe or imperfect surgeries to correct vision that eliminated them from the opportunity to try LASIK. With bladeless LASIK, these potential customers get a second chance because of the near 100% success rate of the procedure.

Some patients follow traditional LASIK with follow-ups to make other corneal flaps or reduce eye-irritation. Bladeless LASIK with InterLase appear to have reduced the possibility of this happening.

The natural reaction to the thought of bladeless LASIK is that it eliminates the need for a practiced and season doctor to perform the surgery. While it may be true to a point, the fact is that bladeless LASIK requires a good deal of knowledge in physics and engineering.

While surgeons may have only been required to have knowledge of medicine and anatomy in the past, they now must be computer savvy. The advantages of bladeless LASIK seem to boil down to two basic ideas, a higher success rate and less chance of follow-up procedures.

Source: http://usalasikcenters.com/bladeless_lasik.html

The possibility of complications or imperfect vision after LASIK vision correction can be greatly reduced if you simply find out if you are a good prospect for the surgery. Not everyone who wants LASIK vision correction is necessarily a good candidate to have the surgery. You should consider a few things before you settle on LASIK:
· If you don’t like to take a chance every now and then, you probably shouldn’t have LASIK vision correction. There are possibilities of complications as a result of LASIK that you should research before having the procedure done.
· If having LASIK vision correction could affect your career or is not covered by your insurance you should think of another alternative. The cost of LASIK is getting cheaper, but is still quite expeexpensive and you’ll want to make sure it isn’t prohibited by your employer.
· You must be an adult with refractive stability to be accepted for LASIK vision correction. Refractive instability is determined by patients who are 20 or younger with fluctuating hormones due to such things as diabetes or someone who is pregnant or breastfeeding or taking medications that cause fluctuation in vision.
· If you regularly engage in contact sports or suffer from a condition or disease may affect wound healing you should consider an alternative to LASIK vision correction.There are a number of other situations you should discuss with your doctor prior to LASIK vision correction. If you have herpes or shingles involving the eye area you should disclose that information. Also, any glaucoma, ocular hypertension, eye diseases, eye injuries, previous eye surgeries, or keratoconus should be discussed.

You should also ask your doctor to screen you for the following conditions prior to LASIK vision correction:
· Blepharitis
· Large pupils
· Thin corneas
· Previous refractive surgeries
· Dry eyes

Once you have researched all of these conditions or discussed them with a LASIK surgeon you can determine if you are a candidate for LASIK vision correction.

Source: http://usalasikcenters.com/who_qualifies_for_lasik_surgery.html

By Tanya Turner

Are you considering Lasik surgery to improve your vision? Then you owe it to yourself to find out exactly what happens during Lasik before you commit yourself to the procedure.
Lasik is a relatively simple and fast procedure. The entire surgery takes about 30 minutes, during which you will be lying on your back in the room containing the laser system. The laser system is a machine with a computer screen and a microscope attached to it.
Whether you have shortsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism the cause is the same - your cornea is not a perfect shape. The goal of the Lasik surgery is to reshape (polish) your cornea so the light going through it focuses better on your retina.
The surgeon can’t use a general anesthetic because you have to remain conscious, throughout, and be able to look directly at the laser. However, anesthetic drops are used for your eyes, so you will not feel any pain - only some pressure and a little discomfort. You will be able to see during the entire procedure, although your vision might blur or flicker, for a few moments.

Lasik surgery can be separated into 6 steps

First of all the surgeon will drop a few numbing drops into your eye and clean the area around it. Then your eyelids will be propped open. Before the laser can start its work, the surgeon will need to cut a flap in your cornea. This could be done with either a laser or with microkeratome - a special cutting instrument. It might sound scary, but don’t worry: you won’t feel the cutting.After that, the laser will be positioned over your eye and you will have to look directly at it for about 60 seconds. The reshaping has not started yet, but your eye needs to get used to being focused on the light.When your eye is in the perfect position, the laser will start its work. The laser is controlled by a computer, which is preprogrammed by the surgeon to remove a specific amount of corneal tissue.After your cornea is reshaped, the flap is put back on it place. Stitches won’t be used to keep the flap in place; instead, doctors use a special protective shield to hold it. The shield will protect your eye from being touched accidentally.

That’s it! Usually you can go home straight after the procedure, but you will have to organize a lift for yourself because you might feel a bit dizzy and your vision will be blurred, at first; obviously you shouldn’t drive, under these conditions. The improvement in vision is usually noticeable the same day, or by the following morning, at the latest.
Straight after Lasik surgery you might feel some discomfort, like there is something in your eye. The most difficult thing is to resist the urge to rub your eyes, but you mustn’t touch them until the flap is healed.
There are also several restrictions, after the surgery. You shouldn’t use any eye make-up for two weeks, play any sports for four weeks, or swim or take a hot bath for two months. Also you will have to come in for a follow up visit within 48 hours after the surgery, plus a few more visits during the following six months.

About the Author
Tanya Turner is an eye health and vision expert. She provides consumer information, tips and advice about Lasik surgery and healthy contact lenses.

By Dean Brooks

The development of computer technology the recent years has had a huge impact on the medical science. Today this technology is used in every aspect of medical field. This is also true when it comes to eye surgery. Nowadays, there are many types of surgery available to correct a persons vision problems. Laser eye surgery is one of the most advanced, and is used especially for the correction of problems like myopia (near sightedness), hyperopia (far sightedness), and astigmatism (distorted vision).

Why is the reason such problems occur in the first place? The main cause of such problems is problems with focusing the image on the retina of the eye and the reason for that varies upon three different factors:

the distance from the back of the eye to the front of it,

the shape of the cornea which is the curved clear front surface of the human eye above the iris and the pupil. It provides approximately two thirds of the eye’s ability to focus.

the shape of the lens.

The shape of the cornea is changed using special devices during a laser eye surgery. One such device is called excimer laser. What this procedure does is producing a laser beam that vaporizes tissue around the eye. It actually removes targeted areas of the eye tissue without harming the surrounding area. Therefore It also goes under the name if ‘cold’ laser.

Laser Surgery Procedures

The most common types of laser surgery procedures are

PRK (Photo-Refractive Keractomy), available since early nineties and

LASIK Eye Surgery (Laser Assisted in situ Keratomileusis), first introduced in mid nineties.

The PRK procedure take small amounts of eye tissue on the surface of the eye and vaporizes it using a beam of light in this type of surgery. This procedure removes enough tissue to reshape the cornea and correct vision. The recovery takes a week or less.

The LASIK surgery procedure involves a series of steps that are considered complicated.

Step one is to cut a flap of the cornea and lifted.

Step two: the surgeon removes precise amounts of the inside layers of the cornea using a laser guided by a computer.

Step three: the surgeon puts the flap back in its place and the eye heals fast by itself.

What are the benefits and the risks?

Highly skilled and well prepared medical specialists perform the Laser eye surgery. For majority of the patients, the results are very good and their lives are significantly improved. They can throw away their glasses or contact lenses after a successful surgery.

Keep in mind the importance of having realistic expectations about laser eye surgery. In some cases it might be necessary to wear glasses for reading if the patient is over 40 years of age. The eyes continue to change after the surgery and you may have to wear prescription glasses or lenses at some point in your life. A second laser eye surgery is normally not ruled out if the first one is not entirely successful.

One side effect of PRK laser eye surgery, is that the patient may have a blurry vision throughout the healing process. Fortunately, this generally clears up later.

Regression is another side effect from such surgery. What happens is that the eye returns back to its’ previous condition. This might happen within six months and if it happens you might need another surgery to correct it or you have to wear glasses or contact lenses.

The negative side effects are very less in a LASIK surgery. Even the healing of the eye is faster. Since a LASIK involves cutting of some tissues of the eye the complications and risks are a bit higher than the other eye surgery procedures we have mentioned.

Source: http://usalasikcenters.com/what_is_laser_eye_surgery_and_can_it_give_me_a_better_vision.html

By: Jeff Flow

Laser eye surgery is a medical procedure consisting of the use of laser for reshaping the surface of the cornea. It is used to improve myopia (shortsightedness), hypermetropia (long sightedness) or astigmatism. The first information on laser eye surgery dates back from over twenty years ago.

During laser eye surgery, an excimer controlled by a computer is used to remove tiny amounts of corneal tissue. The aim of the procedure is to restore normal vision, relieving the patient from wearing glasses or contacts.

In one type of laser eye surgery, the outer layer of the cornea, also called epithelium, is removed and an excimer laser is used to reshape underneath tissue. This procedure is called photorefractive keratectomy (PRK).

In a newer procedure, a microkeratome is used to cut a flap in the corneal tissue, which is then lifted and an excimer laser is used to reshape underlying tissue. In the end, the flap is put back to its place. This type of laser eye surgery is called laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Nowadays, it is more commonly used than PRK.

Information on Laser Eye Surgery Procedure

The excimer laser is a special type of laser that does not burn the corneal tissue, but vaporizes a small quantity of the cornea each time a beam is pulsed onto the eye surface. The number of pulses and diameter of the beam are carefully controlled by a computer to enhance accuracy.

Local anesthetic eye drops are used before the surgery. The procedure takes a few minutes per eye. The actual time when the laser is used for reshaping the corneal tissue is generally less than a minute.

Various eye conditions require different types of treatment:
l Myopia - the central peak of the cornea has to be flattened in order to reduce short-sightedness and improve vision.
l Hypermetropia - the central peak of the cornea has to be made steeper in order to improve vision. The laser is applied to the edges of the cornea.
l Astigmatism - this is a condition where the cornea is not evenly curved. The laser is applied more linear to improve vision.

Information on Laser Eye Surgery - Post Surgery

After laser eye surgery, you should expect some minor discomfort. However, you should be able to see, although not very clearly. You won’t be able to drive on your own, so you need to have someone drive you home or take a cab.

Information on Laser Eye Surgery Possible Side Effects

Just like any operation, laser eye surgery involves a few risks as well. You should have some information on laser eye surgery and its possible complications and side effects before deciding you want to have this type of surgery.
l Treatment not successful - this may be the result of either under treatment and over treatment. You may need another surgery to enhance vision.
l Dry eyes - you might have to use eye drops.
l Delayed healing - the flap or the outer layer of the cornea might not heal properly and require follow-up treatment.
l Infection - in case of an infection, you may need to follow an antibiotic treatment.
l Superficial scarring - a second procedure might be needed to repair scarred tissue.
l Excessive thinning of the cornea - vision problems may return and you might need to use contacts or have another surgery.
l Sensitive eyes - some patients experience excessive sensitivity to glare, which makes driving more difficult.
l Blurred vision - ‘halos’ might result from the surgical procedure, but usually they fade out over time.

Before deciding on a certain type of laser eye surgery, you should consult a doctor to examine your eye condition thoroughly, provide you with information on laser eye surgery risks and benefits and give you some advice on which procedure is best for your specific problems.

Source: http://www.1articleworld.com/Article/Great-Information-On-Laser-Eye-Surgery/26757

By: Clint Jhonson

Major advances in laser eye corrective surgery have helped people worldwide to regain their vision and get rid of their glasses. Refractive errors that were once adjusted with glasses or contacts are today much easily treated, with the help of laser eye surgery and its various procedures. Patients recuperate successfully and improve their vision, benefiting from secure and innovative laser eye techniques.

Laser vision correction Toronto specialists perform eye surgery, after a previous examination of the patient and making sure that no contraindications exist. The Internet has helped interested people to take an informed decision, as there are a lot of laser eye correction surgery Toronto offering their services. Laser eye surgery is not something completely risk-free; people have to be aware that it represents after all a surgical procedure.

There are three basic surgical techniques used by laser vision correction Toronto clinics and all of them utilize the excimer laser in order to regulate the shape of the cornea. In the case of people wearing corrective prescriptions, the cornea has a deformed shape being either too steep or too flat; with laser eye correction surgery Toronto, such problem are eliminated and the patient’s visual acuity is restored.

It is incredible how much the technology concerning laser eye correction has advanced. Eye surgery is surely one of the greatest things about modern medicine and doctors of laser vision correction Toronto are well known for the excellent results. The chances of complications are quite small but they do exist and this why it is for the best to undergo a pre-surgery examination, helping the eye doctor collect as much information as possible.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people forced to wear corrective devices, such as glasses or lenses. Laser eye surgery can treat all these refractive disorders, helping the cornea regain its normal function. The three methods mentioned before performed by laser eye correction surgery Toronto clinics are: LASIK, LASEK and PRK. If you are interested in any of them, you should know that the Internet contains a wealth of information on the subject.

PRK is known to be the surgical procedure that takes a longer period of time to recuperate and that may provide more discomfort. Still, it can be the suitable solution for myopic patients, keeping in mind that the cornea is hardly damaged at all. The difference between LASIK and PRK is that PRK does not involve a lasting flap. The corneal epithelium is taken out with an excimer laser and granted to revitalize.

LASIK is one of the most used techniques by laser vision correction Toronto doctors. Using the excimer laser, the force of heat surgically removes corneal tissue without affecting close areas. The reshaped cornea can reflect the light accurately, thus eliminating the refractive disorder and the need for glasses or contact lenses. The recovery period is short and the effects are spectacular; laser corrective eye surgery providing the clear vision everybody needs to acquire information under normal conditions.

LASEK is another option for laser eye correction surgery Toronto. Laser eye surgery specialist recommend it for people wearing glasses or contacts, for ones suffering from the condition called ‘dry eyes’ and for the ones leading an active, occupied life. This kind of laser eye treatment allows an incredibly fast period of recovery, eliminating the complications created by the flap in LASIK and providing almost no discomfort.

If you are worried about laser eye surgery costs then you should ask yourself how much discomfort and what your expenses were with eye consults, corrective prescriptions. Keep in mind that this technology is more than important considering the benefits it may bring to you. Laser eye correction surgery has brought the advantage of seeing clear to millions of people and all of them have declared themselves completely satisfied. If you can see without glasses or contacts, why not take a chance with eye surgery?

Source: http://www.1articleworld.com/Article/The-miracles-performed-by-laser-vision-correction-Toronto-specialists/98619

By: Dana Siconolfi

Are you tired of wearing glasses but too afraid to have laser eye surgery? Eye braces may be just the thing you’ve been waiting for.

A long time ago, back in the 1960’s, two California doctors when getting feedback from their patients who wore contact lenses, kept hearing the same type of story over and over again. Many times their patients would leave their home, drive to work and then halfway through the day notice that they were not wearing their contact lenses. And they were seeing perfectly well. It appeared that the constant wearing of the contact caused a gradual reshaping of their cornea, improving their ability to see. This chance discovery eventually led to experimentations and studies on shaping the eyes using contact lenses.

Corrective eye braces or CRT (Corneal Refractive Therapy) lenses as they are formally known, are hard contact lenses that act much like a retainer or braces do on your teeth. You put them on at night just before you go to bed. During the night, while you sleep, they reshape the cornea of your eye. When you wake up in the morning, your blurred vision is gone. You can see the pictures on your wall, the buttons on your clothes, and the alarm clock on your dresser. You have 20/20 vision.

Unlike laser eye surgery, the changes are not permanent. The changes to the cornea will last only a day on some people. On others, it has lasted up to a week.

So who are the most likely candidates for these eye braces?

Young teenagers for one. Many good eye surgeons will not operate on a teenager or a person under 18 or 21 because the body, including the eyes. may still be growing and changing. At those ages, they doctor may legitimately determine that the risk is not worth it and rule out corrective eye surgery altogether. In this case, eye braces, may be a good alternative.

The eyes are one of our most important senses and many people are leery of making any type of permanent change to them. Add to that the growing number of malpractice lawsuits involving refractive surgery, and some people, especially those already wary of surgical operations, begin to look for alternative ways of improving their vision. For them, eye braces are a good compromise between permanent contact lenses and laser eye surgery.

Those looking for a bargain will also like eye braces. The cost of CRT lenses is much less than the cost of laser eye surgery.

The news is not all good, however. The braces have to be hard, in order to reshape the cornea. This can make them uncomfortable to wear. And although most people will get used to them, some find they can’t adjust.

Also, although relatively infrequent, the wearing of contact lenses, does increase the risk of microbial infections of the eye.

And thirdly, there have been no long term studies of the effect of wearing eye braces on a nightly basis for an extended period of time.

So if you want CRT lenses how do you get them? You can’t just go into an eye doctor’s office and order them. A CRT lens has to be prescribed by a doctor who has been certified in CRT lenses.

Source: http://www.1articleworld.com/Article/Are-Eye-Braces-Safer-Than-Laser-Eye-Surgery-/168296

By: Charles Moore

While in the past bad eyesight meant you were finished; this is the case no longer. To end the use of glasses, laser eye (LASIK) surgeons kept on trying to find a way to fix the eyesight problem - and soon made LASIK.

LASIK means Laser Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis, a form of laser eye surgery. Even though contact lenses allow those with poor eyes to see without glasses, LASIK surgeons fix the eyes forever. Nowhere is that more evident than in the state of Texas.

Previous generations used a metal blade to make the corneal flap, today’s LASIK surgerons use a laser- which is faster and less painful. The laser used today is the excimer laser; discovered by Dr. Bhaumik in May, 1973.

Ever since an ultraviolet excimer laser was discovered capable of altering tissue while giving no thermal damage to the surrounding area, scientific discoveries were made for the use of the excimer laser by LASIK surgeons, meaning the process today is far less complicated than the one of the past. While dozens of problems were found in the past, they have since been few and far between and almost no problems today are had with LASIK eye surgery.

Even though LASIK is a way to change poor eyesight by straightening out the cornea, it is not as hard to perform as normal surgery. LASIK is done in two spells; and as it is so simple the patient does not have to be unconscious (although a sedative like Valium is sometimes used).

In the first spell, a corneal flap of tissue is formed using a laser; for the second spell, the cornea is fixed in order to solve the bad eyes. Due to the laser being used, the cornea is “fooled”; it does not realise it has been altered and so a lot of the old problems (such as corneal haze) are removed.

You should weigh the risks and benefits of the surgery and determine if this is for you. Once you qualify, you can collect information from your eye doctor and read educational materials on this procedure so you can make an educated decision. You can then schedule an appointment with your eye surgeon and he or she will discuss the procedure with you.

The surgery is computer guided for precision and accuracy. Numbing drops are placed in each eye and a mild sedative is given to the patient prior to surgery. A cornea flap is made and the cornea tissue is ablated or reshaped to correct refractive error. The surgery has little if any discomfort both during the surgery and after the procedure. If pain occurs, an over the counter pain medication should be all that is needed.

Source: http://www.1articleworld.com/Article/LASIK-Surgeons-Fix-The-Eyes-Forever/189379

By: Tatyana Turner

Lasik is a relatively simple and fast procedure. The entire surgery takes about 30 minutes, during which you will be lying on your back in the room containing the laser system. The laser system is a machine with a computer screen and a microscope attached to it.
Whether you have shortsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism the cause is the same - your cornea is not a perfect shape. The goal of the lasik surgery is to reshape (polish) your cornea so the light going through it focuses better on your retina.

The surgeon can’t use a general anesthetic because you have to remain conscious, throughout, and be able to look directly at the laser. However, anesthetic drops are used for your eyes, so you will not feel any pain - only some pressure and a little discomfort. You will be able to see during the entire procedure, although your vision might blur or flicker, for a few moments.

Lasik surgery can be separated into 6 steps

1. First of all the surgeon will drop a few numbing drops into your eye and clean the area around it. Then your eyelids will be propped open.

2. Before the laser can start its work, the surgeon will need to cut a flap in your cornea. This could be done with either a laser or with microkeratome - a special cutting instrument. It might sound scary, but don’t worry: you won’t feel the cutting.

3. After that, the laser will be positioned over your eye and you will have to look directly at it for about 60 seconds. The reshaping has not started yet, but your eye needs to get used to being focused on the light.
When your eye is in the perfect position, the laser will start its work. The laser is controlled by a computer, which is preprogrammed by the surgeon to remove a specific amount of corneal tissue.

4. After your cornea is reshaped, the flap is put back on it place.

5. Stitches won’t be used to keep the flap in place; instead, doctors use a special protective shield to hold it. The shield will protect your eye from being touched accidentally.

6. That’s it! Usually you can go home straight after the procedure, but you will have to organize a lift for yourself because you might feel a bit dizzy and your vision will be blurred, at first; obviously you shouldn’t drive, under these conditions. The improvement in vision is usually noticable the same day, or by the following morning, at the latest.

Straight after lasik surgery you might feel some discomfort, like there is something in your eye. The most difficult thing is to resist the urge to rub your eyes, but you mustn’t touch them until the flap is healed.
There are also several restrictions, after the surgery. You shouldn’t use any eye make-up for two weeks, play any sports for four weeks, or swim or take a hot bath for two months. Also you will have to come in for a follow up visit within 48 hours after the surgery, plus a few more visits during the following six months.

Source: http://www.1articleworld.com/Article/Lasik—Simple-Procedure-or-Dangerous-Surgery-/14867