PRK Vs LASIK
LASIK is the only type of eye surgery that most people have ever heard mentioned so patients are often leery of PRK when their eye surgeon mentions it as a possibility. Not all eye surgery is the same and potential patients should seek out the type of eye surgery that best suits their particular eyesight problem.
The cornea is made up of 5 layers in total but for eye surgery only the top 3 layers come into play. The epithelium is the top or outer layer. It is soft and has the ability to heal quickly. Boman’s membrane lies beneath the epithelium. This layer is very tough and difficult to penetrate, it protects the cornea from injury. The stroma is the third layer. It is also the thickest layer and it does not re-grow.
Here are the basic differences between PRK and LASIK:
In an LASIK eye surgery operation a small flap is cut from the cornea, the flap is folded back out of the way and the laser reshapes beneath the surface of the cornea. The stroma is the area that is worked on in the LASIK procedure.
PRK laser surgery creates no flap and reshapes the cornea by removing thin layers of cells from the outer surface. The eye surgeon uses a laser to vaporize a portion of the epithelium to gain access to the stroma layer underneath.
LASIK eye surgery has a much quicker recovery time and results are often noticed immediately. PRK not only has a much longer recovery time, up to 2 months and results of the surgery often take that long to be realized. PRK also has much more postoperative discomfort associated with it. Blurred or hazy vision is often another side effect of PRK that can exist for the two month long recovery period. Dry eyes is another side effect but the eye surgeon will provide eye lubrication drops. Antibiotics will also probably be prescribed to prevent an infection from occurring.
PRK eye surgery involves removing a portion of the epithelium so patients may be required to wear a temporary bandage contact lens until the epithelium regenerates (about a week).
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Filed Under Eye Surgery Types, General, LASIK, PRK |
Tagged With dry eyes, eye surgery, eye surgery comparision, eye surgery options, eye surgery side effects, laser eye surgery, LASIK, lazer eye surgery, PRK, types of eye surgery, vision correction surgeries