The Importance of Refractive Surgery

Refractive surgery is cosmetic eye surgery performed to correct or enhance the refractive condition of an individual's eye. This can involve different procedures such as surgical reshaping of the iris, lens implantation or even lens replacement. But what exactly is refractive? What do we mean by it? And what are some of its benefits?Chick here for more details about chirurgia refrattiva

The term refractive refers to the optical properties of a human eye, the way in which light enters and passes through it. Vision is a complex process of seeing, and one which can be improved through surgery and other devices that correct the way that light is processed. Refractive errors in the eye can vary from person to person and can range from nearsightedness to farsightedness. They are caused by a variety of factors such as: refractive errors associated with astigmatism, hyperopia, cataracts, presbyopia, dry eyes, cataract and irregular corneal irregularities. A refractive error can be corrected through different techniques, including surgeries and prescriptions.

The most common method of correcting a refractive error is called LASIK eye surgery. In this surgery, a tiny laser is used to reshape the corneal surface. In essence, it reshapes the corneal surface to make it more spherical and reduce the size of the iris. One of the major drawbacks of this procedure is that it can only correct some types of refractive errors. Some of these are nearsightedness and farsightedness. However, it can greatly reduce the size of irregular corneal surfaces and the occurrence of cataracts and presbyopia. And because the refractive surgery doesn't require too many incisions to be made, it is often considered a low risk procedure.

Another type of refractive surgery, LASEK (Laser In Situ Keratomileusis) is similar to LASIK in the fact that it uses laser technology. But instead of reshaping the corneal surface, it uses a thin flap to seal up the edges of the iris. As the name suggests, the goal of this procedure is to make the corneal surface more spherical. In LASEK, two lasers, one placed inside the iris and another placed on the corneal flap, operate in tandem to reshape the corneal surface. With LASEK, the eye surgeon has more freedom to reshape the iris.

There are also several ways of correcting prescription lenses. One is known as a tonic LASIK procedurewhere the surgeon inserts the toric lens into the corneal flap. This type of lens does not require an incision and has minimal scarring.

If you suffer from one or more of the visual conditions, then refractive surgery might be right for you. If you are suffering from any of them, it is important to consult with your optometrist before deciding which procedure you would like to have performed. Before making a decision, it is very important to discuss with your family doctor and get a proper diagnosis. Some conditions are serious, and you should never attempt to treat them without consulting a licensed eye surgeon. Also, remember that there are risks involved when having refractive surgery, so you should always have your doctor explain the side effects of any procedure, so that you will have an understanding of them.