Alternatives to Lasik

If Lasik is not for you owing to contra-indications or for other reasons, you'll be pleased to learn of the many alternative methods to correct vision problems.

An alternative laser treatment is Photo refractive Keratectomy (PRK) which also modifies the cornea to correct vision. Unlike Lasik, in PRK an excimer laser sculpts an area on the eye surface (epithelium). The excimer laser is more accurate that the blade used in Lasik. It removes microscopic corneal cell layer without damaging the adjacent cells. This gives better results and lessens the risk of complications. If you're considering PRK, you should sit down with your surgeon and find out everything about the procedure before making a decision.

There is no pain felt during the PRK procedure. Like any other surgery, PRK has risks for side effects and complications. However, serious complications are very rare and the risks can be minimized during the examination and screening process carried out before the surgery. Infection is the most common complication, but this can be treated with antibiotics. There might also be some risk of delayed healing of the corneal tissue. Medications can usually treat this.

Other alternative vision correction methods include Radial Keratotomy, ALK, Intra-corneal ring, ICL (implantable contact lenses), and Orthokeratology (a process of treating myopia using hard contact lenses to gradually flatten the cornea, and consequently correct the vision). However, for the latter, the improvement is temporary. When the contact lenses are removed, the case reverts to the initial state, because the cornea returns to its original shape.