Eye surgery

When you perform a laser operation (LASIK or LASEK), you undergo a surgical procedure in the eye. It may therefore be worth considering the options before deciding to undergo surgery.

LASIK

Is today one of the most used methods. Simply explained, the method is performed by first removing the corneal lid before using an excimer laser to remove a micrometer-thin layer of the cornea so that the bend changes. When this is done, the corneal lid is put back in its place where it attaches quickly. This method does not take more than a few seconds to perform and you then see clearly, immediately after the operation. This method is suitable if you have a normally thick cornea and do not use too high a strength.

LASIK

Used for major vision defects or when the cornea turns out to be too thin to perform a laser operation. This method also removes the corneal cap and uses an excimer laser to correct vision defects, but instead removes a deeper and thicker layer of the cornea than in a lasik operation. When vision defects are corrected, the outermost layer of the cornea is returned so that they can attach. With this operation, it takes a little longer before the cornea is restored and an eye bandage is therefore needed that protects the eye for the first few days after the operation. You often experience pain after this type of surgery.

ICL

(intraocular contact lens) is performed for major vision defects or for very thin corneas. The method does not use a laser, instead a very thin plastic lens is inserted into the eye in front of the eye’s own lens. The inserted lens corrects the refractive error of the eye. The method is reversible and the lens can be replaced.

RLE

Most often used for people over 40 years, where the eye lens has become stiffer and focusing at close distances has become more difficult. Here you replace the eye’s natural lens but a new artificial lens, which is the same method used in cataract surgery. If you do such an operation, you will not develop cataracts later in life. The artificial lens that is inserted can be multifocal and works both at a distance and at close range. It is also possible to insert a monofocal lens that only corrects distance or nearsightedness.

The idea with eye surgery is often that you should be “glasses-free”. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Some experience that the vision did not become “as good” as expected, or that they did not become completely glasses-free. Once you have undergone a surgical procedure, it is not as easy to correct any errors, or it may be that the treatment may not give the correction you had expected, and then the disappointment will be great. If you are considering performing a laser / eye operation, it is important that you have been told in advance what can be expected after the operation. This is especially true in relation to RLE operations and insertion of multifocal lenses, you do not necessarily need to be completely spectacle-free!

Symptoms that can occur after an operation are that you become more sensitive to light, dry eyes, light scattering that leads to seeing rings around light sources, poorer night vision, infections that can lead to the formation of scar tissue and impaired vision.

If you have decided to perform an operation, the prerequisite for being satisfied is greatest if your expectations correspond to what is possible to achieve for your particular vision.

More information

You can find more information on ogonoperation.se (swedish).