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Whenever a patient undergoes any type of surgical procedure
there is a possibility for complications. It is natural that when a person's
body is opened up and tools are in use, that bacteria of some sort can enter the
patient or the body could have a reaction related to the medication. LASIK
surgery is no different, there are risks to LASIK surgery, but they are few and
far between.
LASIK risk continues to drop as doctors and engineers perfect the equipment used
in the process. The risks involved in LASIK also drop as doctors continue to
screen for the right candidates to have the surgery. Research now shows that
with the right pre-testing and surgical care, the risk of any complications in
LASIK surgery is less than 1%.
The most common risk with LASIK surgery is a complication with the flap created
by the surgeon to cover the cornea. In traditional eye LASIK surgery the flap is
created when tissue is cut by a surgical tool known as a microkeratome. Since
this tool, a metal blade is used by a human being there remains a risk related
to human error.
When this type of traditional eye LASIK surgery is performed the risk is when
the flap is then used as the natural bandage at the end of the surgery it is not
the right size. Therefore, the complication is an irregular bandage that
irritates the eye and causes what is known as an irregular astigmatism. This
LASIK risk is greatly reduced by a newer "bladeless" LASIK procedure.
In bladeless LASIK surgery, the risk of complication is reduced because the
blade or microkeratome is no longer used. It is replaced by IntraLase, or
another type of laser, that eliminates the human error. And this is called the
eye laser LASIK surgery.
When assessing these LASIK risks it is recommended that when you are considering
LASIK surgery that you ask your doctor how he/she goes about correcting these
problems. Some complications that arise from LASIK surgery can be made even
worse by over or under correction. Ask your doctor as part of your original
process on how they handle this situation.
There are many other risks associated with LASIK surgery, particularly laser
LASIK surgery. The risk of VISION LOSS is the one that cannot be corrected with
glasses, lenses or another surgery.
DRY EYE SYNDROME is another risk after LASIK that causes the eye not to produce
enough tears and moisture. UNDERCORRECTION/OVERCORRECTION, a patient may still
require additional treatment that may or may not be possible after the
procedure. DEBILITATING VISION PROBLEM is a risk that makes a LASIK patient
develop bothersome symptoms after the procedure including glare, halos and
double vision.
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