Photorefractive Keratectomy Benefits

Fortunately, there are numerous benefits of PRK, which have been validated over the years. First, the medical community estimates that around eighty percent of PRK patients do longer need any vision correct implements. This means that eighty percent of people no longer need to deal with the hassle of glasses or contact lenses.

Another benefit of PRK is that it is performed in an outpatient setting. The actual eye operation itself can be conducted in less than a minute.

A third benefit of this operation is that it can be used on patients who are unable to have Lasik. If you have a thin cornea or a damaged cornea, you can have PRK but you can not have Lasik.

Photorefractive Keratectomy Eligibility

As one of the less popular eye surgery today (with all of the emphasis on Lasik), there are often numerous questions as to who is eligible for this procedure. As such, we will describe the ideal characteristics of someone who is eligible for this procedure. First, the candidate should be at least twenty years old and have a history or normal eye health. Second, while there is no gender restriction, if you are pregnant, you should not have this surgery. Third, the candidate should have realistic expectations of what PRK will provide for them. If the candidate has unrealistic expectations, it is very likely they will be unhappy with the results.

Side Effects of PRK

Unlike Lasik, Photorefractive Keratectomy patients tend to experience a much longer recover time. Also, when compared to Lasik, you may experience greater discomfort and pain after the surgery.

Also, it isn’t uncommon for PRK patients to experience dry eyes, which often requires eye drops. Additionally, many PRK patients have diminished night vision, resulting in seeing increased halo and glare effects. Therefore, if you undergo PRK, it may be best to wait a few months before you drive at night.

Lastly, you may be required to wear specialized contact lenses for a few days to allow your surface cells (epithelium cells) to properly heal.

How is PRK different from Lasik?

Since Lasik is so popular, may people want to know what the difference between these two procedures. The main difference is in how the surgeon can access to the stoma. With Lasik Eye Surgery, an eye surgeon will use a blade to cut a flap into the cornea. At this point, the surgeon gently folds this flap back and the laser is able to vaporize the stoma. With PRK, the surgeon does not create a flap in the cornea. Instead, the surgeon uses the laser to vaporize of portion of the surface cells along with the stoma.

What is PRK?

While it seems that everyone nowadays is very focused on Lasik, there are other options still available. Once of the most popular is PRK. PRK stands for Photorefractive Keratectomy. During the PRK surgery, an eye surgeon actually removes thin layers of your eye’s outer surface, to correct your vision problems. Additionally, during PRK, a surgeon uses the laser to vaporize a portion of the cornea’s cells (which are called epithelium cells) to gain access to the stoma (or inner portion of the eye). Once the surgeon gains this access, he or she will also vaporize a portion of the stoma to reshape your eye, resulting in improved vision.