Eye laser makes a dream come true
With eye laser surgery, your options are unlimited. Going on vacation without thinking all the time where your glasses or lenses are? Or just imagine waking up in the morning without putting your glasses or lenses as a first thing to do?
Eye laser surgery is considered a surgical approach to correct refractive errors of the human eye aiming on a stable and precise permanent correction. Our ophthalmologists at IROC eye clinic in Zurich have the longest experience with eye laser treatments since our founder and chairman Professor Theo Seiler, MD, PhD has performed the worldwide first eye laser surgery back in 1986. Laser eye treatments (LASIK, SMILE, PRK) became the routine procedures that our eye specialists perform on a daily basis in Zurich. We can look back on 30 years of experience in the field of eye laser surgery, which has experienced a constant evolution through ongoing research cooperation between IROC ophthalmologists and leading laser manufacturers. More than 20,000 eye laser operations have been performed in our clinic since its foundation.
Eye laser methods (LASIK / SMILE / PRK)
LASIK (laser in situ keratomileusis) is with over 80 million treatments worldwide the most frequently used method of surgery, which our eye laser specialists at IROC perform very successfully. Using a femtosecondlaser a very thin lamella of the superficial cornea is created and flipped over. The newly created surface is then treated with the excimer laser to correct the refractive error. After the eye laser treatment, the flap is flipped back over and re-attached.
Using PRK (photoablative refractive keratectomy), the eye laser treatment is performed on the surface of the eye offering a safer and “flapless” alternative to LASIK. On the other hand, PRK has the disadvantage of transient postoperative pain and of a slowlier visual rehabilitation.
SMILE (small incision lenticule extraction) is a relatively new approach, where a refractive correction is achieved by the manual removal of a femtosecondlaser-created corneal lenticule. The results are comparable to LASIK, but with the difficulty of postoperative enhancement.
We are happy to see you for a pre-examination at IROC eye clinic to inform you in detail about refractive surgery procedures and to determine together with you eye laser procedure that is optimal for your vision. Please book your appointment here.
Eye laser treatment procedure & healing process
If you decide to have LASIK or another refractive eye laser treatment at IROC eye clinic you will spend approximately 1.5 hours at IROC eye clinic on the day of surgery. The procedure lasts 15-20 minutes for each eye although the actual eye laser treatment takes less than 1 minute.
After the eye laser treatment itching and/or foreign body sensation may occur, but the entire procedure is fairly painless. In comparison to LASIK and SMILE, patients can expect moderate pain after PRK for up to 3 days.
In brief, illustrations 1 to 4 are showing how an eye laser laser surgery (LASIK) is performed at IROC eye clinic by our eye laser specialists.
Picture 1: Flap creation
A femtosecond laser is accurately positioned on the eye and used to dissect a very thin flap of 100-130 μm (0.1 - 0.13 mm) thickness from the anterior surface of the cornea.
Picture 2: Preparation prior to eye laser treatment
On one side the flap remains connected to the cornea. This hinge is used when the lamella is folded aside. By folding the flap back, the wound bed is exposed in order to perform the refractive laser correction.
Picture 3: Eye laser treatment
Scanning laser spots of a computer-controlled excimer laser remove corneal tissue by means of the preoperatively determined ablation pattern. Modern scanning spot lasers allow any shape correction of the surface of the cornea in seconds with a precision of less than a micron.
Picture 4: Re-attachment of the flap
After the end of the eye laser treatment, the corneal flap is reattached to its original position.
As far as the recovery process is affected, most patients can return to their daily routine and work the next day after LASIK and SMILE eye laser treatment! After PRK procedure, patients are unable to return to daily routine for about 3 days. We encourage you to apply the recommended eye drops after surgery to support the healing process of the eye and to achieve the best possible refractive outcome. Postoperative appointments are scheduled at 1 day, 1 month and 1 year after the eye laser surgery. After PRK this may vary depending on the healing process.
Get additional information about eye laser procedures in our Q/A section.
