PINOY HACK

LASIK is a surgical procedure intended to reduce a person’s dependency on glasses or contact lenses. LASIK, Laser-assisted In Situ Keratomileusis, is a form of refractive laser eye surgery procedure performed by ophthalmologists intended for correcting near- and far-sightedness in vision. It was made possible by research studies at Kansas State University. The procedure is usually a preferred alternative to photorefractive keratectomy, PRK, as it requires less time for full recovery, and the patient experiences less pain overall.

Lasik is surgery to a very delicate part of the eye. Hundreds of thousands of people have had Lasik, most very successfully. As with any surgery, there are risks and possible complications.
Lasik may not give you perfect vision. The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) reports that seven out of 10 patients achieve 20/20 vision, but 20/20 does not always mean perfect vision. If you have Lasik to correct your distance vision, you’ll still need reading glasses around age 45. Lasik surgery is too new to know if there are any long-term ill effects beyond five years after surgery. Lasik surgery cannot be reversed. Most insurance does not cover the surgery.

The LASIK technique was made possible by Jose Barraquer (Colombia), who around 1960 developed the first microkeratome, used to cut thin flaps in the cornea and alter its shape, in a procedure called keratomileusis. This procedure was developed and pioneered by the Barraquer Clinic, based in Bogotá, Colombia. In 1991, LASIK was performed for the first time in the United States by Stephen Brint and Stephen Slade. The same year, Thomas and Tobias Neuhann successfully treated the first German LASIK patients with an automated microkeratome.

Lasik is an outpatient surgical procedure. The only anesthetic is an eye drop that numbs the surface of the eye. The surgery takes 10 to15 minutes for each eye. Sometimes, both eyes are done during the same procedure; but sometimes, surgeons wait to see the result of the first eye before doing the second eye.

Alternative treatment to Lasik:
Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) is a laser procedure used to reduce myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism without creating a corneal flap. Astigmatic keratotomy (AK) is an incisional procedure to reduce astigmatism. Intrastromal corneal rings are clear, thin, polymer inlays placed on the eye to correct low myopia only.