IntraLase


Refractive Error Correction

  • Myopia - Nearsightedness or short sightedness.  This is corrected by flattening the front surface of the eye using a laser.
  • Hyperopia - Long sightedness or farsightedness.  This is corrected by making the central cornea steeper.  This is accomplished by directing the laser beam to remove tissue from around this area.
  • Astigmatism - This is corrected by using a laser to reshape the steepest part of the cornea to make it more spherical.

IntraLase also known as All Laser LASIK, is the latest development in LASIK surgery and amongst one of the most advanced forms of laser eye surgery available. Traditional LASIK surgery uses a hand held blade to cut a flap on the cornea, so that the laser can be applied underneath.  IntraLase provides an alternative method of cutting the corneal flap by using a laser known as femtosecond to do the cutting, instead of a microkeratome blade.  This precision laser technology is an advanced alternative to the mechanical method because it eliminates the induced distortion and possibility of serious complications associated with creating a flap manually.

Not all laser eye surgery clinics offer IntraLase/All Laser LASIK.  If you are interested in this type of laser eye surgery, visit the Find page, to find a laser eye surgery clinic, near you. 

Advantages of IntraLase over traditional LASIK                          

  • Faster healing and recovery
  • Improved precision during surgery and therefore improved visual results.
  • More patients are believed to achieve 20:20 vision.
  • Fewer patients have been reported as losing sharpness of vision. 
  • A better option if you have a steep, flat or thin cornea because a thinner flap is cut.
  • Safer, because of the reliance on a laser rather than on a hand held blade.
  • A cleaner cut in terms of sterility thus, reducing the incidence of infection and inflammations.

IntraLase Surgery Procedure

The preparation for IntraLase surgery, is essentially the same as LASIK surgery.  The difference lies in the first part of the procedure when a flap is made on the cornea.  The laser is focused on the cornea and then the flap is cut whilst considering its thickness, circumference and angles of its edges.  The laser uses an ultra-fast femtosecond pulse and a long wavelength, to create photodisruption at a very precise point within the cornea.  This does not alter any surrounding tissue.  The eye is fixated under very low vacuum and then tiny pulses are optically delivered through a disposable applanation lens.  A resection plane is created by placing the pulses closely together in a spiral pattern and then stacking the spots along the periphery until the surface is broken apart. 

Once the flap is lifted, the excimer laser shapes the cornea as with normal LASIK procedure and then the flap is repositioned.  It then bonds naturally back to the cornea within a minute.

You will be discharged shortly after the procedure and will be given aftercare advice and a follow up appointment may be made. 

Latest Developments

Some clinics are beginning to combine Wavefront technology and femtosecond treatment such as IntraLase.  This may be the ultimate solution to laser eye surgery.

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