Eye Surgery Procedures

Eye surgery may be elective or necessary. You may be weary of wearing contact lenses or glasses and wish to correct your vision permanently. Or you may need other eye surgeries if you suffer from glaucoma or cataracts. Before any surgery, discuss the risks and benefits carefully with your surgeon, as well as any preoperative requirements and post-operative recovery procedures.

Cataract Surgery

• A cataract exists when the eye's lens becomes cloudy. If cataracts impair your vision moderately or severely, you may choose to discuss surgical options with your ophthalmologist. A surgeon can remove the eye's natural lens and replace it with a permanent intraocular lens implant. To recover from this surgery, you will need to use eye drops several times a day, as well as wear a protective patch over your eye.

Glaucoma Surgery

• Glaucoma is an eye disease that can lead to eventual blindness by damaging the optic nerve. If taking medications isn't enough to lower the pressure in the eye, a surgeon may recommend using laser surgery to create small scars in the eye's drainage system. This will increase the drainage of fluid from the eye. The surgeon may also recommend filtering microsurgery to create an extra drainage hole for the eye.

LASIK

• LASIK (laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis) has become a popular procedure to correct myopia, or nearsightedness. Surgeons performing LASIK reshape the cornea using a laser beam to help the eye focus better. You may experience mild discomfort for a day after LASIK surgery. Patients may also experience side effects including dry eyes, astigmatism, a glare or haze, infection, scarring or vision loss.

PRK

• PRK (photorefractive keratectomy) is designed to treat mild to moderate nearsightedness. The surgeon uses a laser to reshape the cornea by removing tiny bits of tissue. For accuracy, a computer maps the eye to pinpoint areas where tissue can be reshaped. Patients may experience discomfort for several weeks following the procedure, as it will take time to heal. Patients may also notice a glare or haze, particularly around light sources.

ALK

• Patients with farsightedness or severe nearsightedness may have ALK (automated lamellar kerotoplasty) surgery. For nearsightedness, the surgeon will cut a flap across the cornea, remove a slice of tissue and replace the flap. This results in reduced refraction because the cornea becomes more flattened. For patients with farsightedness, a flap is also used, but with a deeper incision, which causes the cornea to bulge. This bulging corrects farsightedness. Possible side effects of ALK include infection, vision loss, glare, scarring and astigmatism.