• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
Refractive Surgery Eliminates Glasses for Many Astigmatic Patients
Thanks to continued advances inlaser eyesurgery, refractive surgery tools andtechniques, glasses and contact lenses are fast becoming obsolete for many patients withastigmatism. Patients with undetectedastigmatism often experience headaches,fatigue, eyestrain and blurred vision at alldistances. Because astigmatism may not berecognized as the cause of these symptoms,this condition may go undiagnosed andcontinue to affect sufferers. Astigmatism canalso be present in children, affecting their ability to see well in school and while playingsports.
Characterized by an irregular curvature of the cornea, astigmatism can be detected byregular eye examinations and successfully treated using procedures such as laser in-situkeratomileusis (LASIK ), photorefractive keratectomy (PRK), laser epithelialkeratomileusis (LASEK), laser thermokeratoplasy (LTK) and astigmatic keratotomy (AK;Table 1). An ophthalmologist can determine which type of procedure will work best foreach patient.
Worldwide, >17 million people have undergone laser refractive surgery, and refractive surgery isone of the most commonly performed operations in the United States and byBeverly Hills LASIK surgeons. The newest laser-assisted procedures are approved by the U.S. Food and DrugAdministration to treat up to 6 diopters (D) of astigmatism correction, which includes roughly98% of all astigmatism patients. Advances in laser technology continue to improve treatmentoutcomes.Guttman reported on a recent study by Barraquer, a private practitioner in Colombia, of 364astigmatic myopic patients treated with a new generation “flying spot” excimer laser. Barraquer reported postoperative best-corrected visual acuity of 20/20 or better in 99% of treated eyes at 3months. Astigmatic correction was achieved to within ±0.50 D in 92% of eyes.Remember that for patients in or aroundBeverly Hills LASIK was used after the detection of astigmatism to treat it in its early and advanced stages. Because children may also haveastigmatism, it is important that eye examinations be scheduled at regular intervals to detect anyastigmatism early on.Guttman C. Laser yields safe, predictable correction for astigmatism. Ophthalmology Times,Advanstar Communications, January 1, 2008;36.
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...