Do you want to leave hassling with glasses and contacts behind for crisp, clear vision 24/7? Have you been considering a vision correction procedure in Kingston?
While you’ve likely heard of LASIK, some patients are better suited for other procedures like PRK. So, how do you know which procedure is right for you?
Keep reading to learn more about whether you should get PRK or LASIK in Kingston and the differences between each procedure.
What is LASIK?
LASIK is a vision correction procedure that uses specialized lasers to correct refractive errors like nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. When your eye is too long or too short, or your cornea is misshapen, it can result in one or more of these refractive errors.
Light does not hit the retina at the right point, meaning the images sent to your brain are unfocused or blurry. LASIK solves this by reshaping the cornea, directing light to reach the retina at the best spot for crisp, clear vision.
What Happens During LASIK?
Your LASIK surgeon will prep you for the procedure by numbing your eyes with anesthetic eye drops. They may also offer you a mild sedative if you are feeling anxious.
During the procedure, your LASIK surgeon uses a femtosecond laser to create a small flap on the surface of the cornea or epithelium. They fold back this flap to access the underlying layer of the cornea or the stroma.
A second type of laser, an excimer laser, removes microscopic amounts of corneal tissue to reshape the eye and correct refractive errors. The procedure concludes with your LASIK surgeon folding the corneal flap back in place, which will heal on its own and requires no stitches or bandages.
A significant benefit of the LASIK procedure is its quick recovery time. Many patients notice visual improvements within the first day following the procedure and can return to normal activities like work and driving.
As your eyes heal, your vision will continue to improve gradually, with most patients reaching peak visual clarity several months after the procedure.
Who is a Good Candidate for LASIK?
A good candidate for LASIK must meet the following criteria:
- Being 18 years or older
- Having a stable eye prescription for at least a year
- Having healthy eyes free of conditions like severe dry eye, glaucoma, and cataracts
- Having thick enough corneas for the procedure
- Being in good overall health without conditions like lupus, Sjogren’s syndrome, and rheumatoid arthritis
- Not being pregnant or nursing
- Having realistic expectations of LASIK outcomes
If you are looking to achieve visual freedom with LASIK, a vital candidacy requirement is having thick enough corneas for the procedure. This is because your eyes need to have enough tissue to safely support the corneal flap made during LASIK.
Your eye doctor at Cheema MD Eye Care will perform a comprehensive eye exam and take measurements of your corneas at your LASIK consultation to ensure they are thick enough for LASIK. If your corneal tissue is too thin, they will likely recommend another vision correction procedure like PRK.
What is PRK?
Like LASIK, PRK is a procedure that uses a laser to correct refractive errors like nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism by reshaping the cornea. PRK can be a better choice for people who want to correct their vision permanently but don’t meet the necessary criteria to be considered a good LASIK candidate.
It is often a more viable option for people with thin corneas or severe dry eye syndrome because it does not require creating a corneal flap. Instead, the entire epithelium is removed, and your surgeon reshapes the corneal tissue underneath.
Because of this difference in procedure, PRK recovery is longer than LASIK recovery, as the epithelium typically needs a week or more to regenerate.
How Does PRK Correct Vision?
PRK corrects vision by reshaping the cornea, much like LASIK. The major difference between the two procedures is how your eye surgeon accesses the stroma.
During PRK, your eye surgeon fully removes the epithelium. They will reshape the underlying stroma with an excimer laser in the same way as LASIK, and then a protective ocular bandage will be placed over the eye to protect the exposed part of the cornea.
An ocular bandage is similar to a contact lens. It stays in place until the epithelium is healed, which usually takes around a week.
It typically takes longer to recover from PRK than from LASIK. Blurry vision is common for a few days after the procedure, but most PRK patients report noticeably improved vision within three to five days.
Like LASIK, patients who undergo PRK will notice their vision gradually improving over the next several months until reaching peak clarity.
Who is a Good Candidate for PRK?
The candidacy requirements for PRK are very similar to those for LASIK: you must be at least 18, have a stable prescription, have healthy eyes, not have certain autoimmune conditions, and have realistic expectations about the outcomes of the procedure.
Certain factors that would disqualify a person from LASIK candidacy do not apply to PRK, specifically, having thin corneas or severe dry eye. Corneal thickness is not an issue because rather than making the corneal flap needed for LASIK, the entire epithelium is removed during a PRK procedure.
This difference in procedure also generally disrupts fewer corneal nerves, causing less post-procedure dryness, meaning it can be more suitable for people with severe dry eye. During your preoperative consultation at Cheema MD Eye Care, you’ll have the opportunity to ask your eye doctor questions about LASIK and PRK.
They will use factors like your medical history, lifestyle, and visual goals to determine which procedure is right for you.
Are you ready to experience life in Kingston with stunning visual clarity? Schedule a consultation at Cheema MD Eye Care in Kingston, NY, today to find out whether LASIK or PRK could help you achieve the vision of your dreams!
