Presbyopia
(Monovision)
One
of the most exciting advances in the field of refractive surgery involves
the application of Wavefront testing to the human eye. The basis of
Wavefront testing is from the field of adaptive optics, used for years
by astronomers to build better lens systems for improving the optics
of telescopes.
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The
human eye has two bread categories of aberrations, lower order and
higher order. Lower
order aberrations represent the patient’s prescription for glasses.There
are many
higher order aberrations but the two most important ones
for potential LASIK patients
are spherical aberration and Coma. When these two aberrations are
increased above
preoperative levels, patients may notice more problems with the quality
of their night vision and be more aware of halos, starbursts, flare,
and glare.
Conventional
laser eye surgery (LASIK
and
PRK) for years was excellent at reducing or eliminating the lower
order aberrations and most patients obtained satisfactory uncorrected
vision, usually near 20/20. However, conventional laser eye surgery
procedures like LASIK
and
PRK have often increased the degree of higher order aberrations,
which accounted for the possible increased likelihood of night vision
problems.
Wavefront-based
laser eye surgery measures the amount of both lower and higher order
aberrations. This information is then used by the excimer laser system
for both LASIK
and PRK in an attempt to either reduce
or at least minimize the increase of higher
order aberrations. All of the FDA approved laser systems for LASIK
and
PRK
now offer this
type of treatment, so that each patient’s optical system is
measured more
accurately
than ever before, producing in effect a unique “finger print”
of their pre-operative
visual problems. This truly customized treatment plan is then implemented
in the laser eye surgery (LASIK,
PRK) for each patient.
This
Wavefront fingerprint enables the laser eye surgeon to program the
laser in order to
get the best results for the laser eye surgery that is best for you.
By using Waverfront
testing, there is a possibility that your existing higher order aberrations
may not
increase at all, and some patients report that they can see even better
than they did
with glasses or contact lenses. This is called a gain in best spectacle
corrected visual
acuity. The FDA studies of Wavefront based treatments in LASIK,
PRK and other
laser eye procedures have improved the chance of obtaining 20/20 vision
or better and
have
decreased the chances of significant night vision problems.
To
find a vision correction expert surgeon who has qualified to be listed
at Trusted LASIK surgeons in another area, please visit:
Find
a Trusted LASIK Eye Surgeon
The
screening process and standards used by Trusted LASIK Surgeons, can
be found at:
How
Are Lasik Eye Surgeons Qualified at TLS