Procedures Offered by Albuqerque
Laser Eye Surgeon Dr. John Teahan

Refractive Procedures

• LASIK
• PRK
• CustomVue
• Clear Lens Extraction

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LASIK

LASIK is an acronym for Laser In-situ Keratomileusis, which simply means to shape the cornea (outer window of the eye) so that light rays focus more precisely on the retina, thereby reducing or eliminating refractive errors.
Using an instrument known as a microkeratome, a thin flap of corneal tissue is folded back. The excimer Laser then removes a predetermined amount of tissue from the inner cornea to correct the individual's refractive error. The cornea is made flatter to treat nearsightedness, steeper to treat farsightedness and/or more spherical to correct astigmatism. The corneal flap is placed back in its original position without the need for stitches. LASIK can treat low to very severe refractive errors.

What can I expect during the LASIK procedure?

• After your eye has been numbed with "eye drop" anesthesia, an instrument known as an eyelid speculum will be positioned to hold your eyelids open. You will remain awake and comfortable throughout your procedure.
• A small suction ring will be placed around the cornea and serves as a platform for the microkeratome.
• The microkeratome separates the surface layers of the cornea and the corneal flap is folded back.
• You will be asked to look at a target light while the excimer laser reshapes the corneal tissue. A clicking sound can be heard as each microscopic layer of tissue is vaporized. This procedure lasts 15 to 45 seconds, depending on the amount of correction necessary.
• The corneal flap is then placed back into its original position and allowed to dry for a few minutes.
• You will be given additional eye drops, and your eye may be shielded for protection. Your vision will probably be a little blurry at first, so have someone drive you home and relax for the rest of the day.

What can I expect after the procedure?

For the first few hours after surgery most patients experience a mild irritation. Going home and keeping the eyes closed or napping usually makes the irritation resolve. For the first few hours after the surgery, vision might be slightly hazy like looking through fog. This dissipates with time. By the next morning the vision is much improved and most patients are able to drive without correction. Vision will continue to improve over the next few days.

What are the benefits of laser surgery?

• Clearer, natural vision without the hassles and inconvenience of corrective lenses
• Better vision for recreational sports
• More natural appearance without glasses
• No more fears about being incapacitated in an emergency if lenses are lost
• Can have corrective lens requirement removed from drivers' license
• Wider scope of peripheral vision than glasses provide
• May be safer for eye health than wearing contact lenses for an extended period of time
• New visual freedom for all aspects of life

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PRK

What is nearsightedness?

In the normal eye, light bends through the cornea and lens to focus on the retina. With nearsightedness the eye is longer (or cornea is steeper) causing light to focus in front of the retina. The image is therefore out of focus on the retina and vision is blurred.

The Result

Before PRK treatment, light is out of focus on the retina. After PRK treatment, the "flatter" cornea causes light to bend in such a way as to become focused on the retina. Vision is clear.

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CustomVue

Imagine a quality of vision so crisp and clear, it's like living in a world of Hi-Definition. This quality of vision is impossible to achieve with prescription glasses or contact lenses. Vision that goes beyond 20/20. Today, Southwest Eyecare surpasses the limits of glasses or contacts with CustomVue™ LASIK, the next generation procedure in laser vision correction.

Thanks to CustomVue™ LASIK, it is now possible for many patients to achieve a quality of vision better than 20/20. New 'WaveScan' technology allows our doctors to capture unique imperfections in your vision that could not be previously detected. This information provides 25-times more precision than standard measurements for glasses or contacts. Call us today for your free CustomVue™ LASIK consultation and start enjoying vision like you never have.

Custom LASIK

The latest technological advance in laser vision correction is "custom" LASIK. "Custom" LASIK, which also goes by various other proprietary names, such as CustomVue™, represents the next step in improving the outcome of laser vision correction beyond the excellent results already attainable by conventional means. This is possible because each eye and its associated refractive errors are unique, much like one's fingerprint. Recent advancements in technology now allow us not only to measure these unique refractive imperfections, but also to accurately and predictably eliminate them.

At the heart of "custom" LASIK procedures is the aberrometer, such as the VISX WaveScan™ wave-front measurement system. By adopting technology originally developed for high-powered telescopes, these wave-front measurement devices can identify and quantitate imperfections in the individual's eye 25 times more precisely than the standard methods used for eyeglasses and contact lenses. This information is then digitally transferred to the excimer laser for the treatment, providing a new level of precision and accuracy.

Typically, a "custom" LASIK procedure takes at most a few seconds longer than a conventional procedure. All aspects of the treatments are the same, except the re-shaping of the cornea by the excimer laser is based on the unique wave-front information of the eye, rather than the conventional, non-customized measurements. Just like conventional LASIK, there is no pain during the procedure, and most patients notice immediate results after treatment, with continued improvement in vision over several days.

Results of Clinical Study:

A large clinical study, which was necessary for attaining FDA approval of this new and improved technology, highlighted the excellent results achievable with "custom" LASIK. In this particular study, one year after undergoing "custom" LASIK, 100% of the enrolled patients could pass a driving test without glasses or contact lenses. In fact, 98% of custom-treated patients could see 20/20, and a full 70% could see better than 20/20. Moreover, in this study, four times as many people were very satisfied with their night vision after "custom" LASIK as compared to their night vision before with glasses or contact lenses.

Currently, "custom" LASIK is available to patients whose refractive error falls within the parameters set forth by the FDA. With additional clinical data constantly being submitted to the FDA, the eligibility for "custom" LASIK will surely be expanded. Patients interested in taking advantage of this new and exciting technology should discuss with the surgeon their candidacy for "custom" LASIK treatment.

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Clear Lens Extraction

Why Clear Lens Surgery?

Not all people are good candidates for laser vision correction. Some refractive errors are too high to safely perform LASIK. Yet they too can have their dependency on glasses or contacts decreased by using safe proven modern techniques to improve their distance vision. Thanks to medical and surgical advancements in recent years, clear lens surgery has become one of the gentlest medical procedures performed today. It can be used to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness as well as astigmatism.

The human lens is replaced in CLEAR LENS SURGERY with an artificial lens called an implant to help the light focus properly on the back of the eye.

In clear lens surgery we remove the human lens that has its own "power" (like your glasses) and replace it with an artificial lens with the new stronger or weaker power. As a result, dependency on distance glasses is dramatically reduced. Our unique software programs use the measurements of your eye to compute the power of the artificial lens, which we can implant. The surgery is performed through a tiny incision (less than 3 millimeters in size). It rarely requires stitches.

This is possible thanks to a tiny, beveled incision commonly called the "self-sealing" incision. It is called "self-sealing" because the eye's natural internal pressure holds the incision tightly closed allowing the eye to heal without stitches. The self-sealing is made at the edge of the "clear cornea," and is less than 3 mm in length. The clear cornea is the transparent covering of the front of the eye. As a matter of fact, the modern corneal incision is only a fraction of the size required to perform LASIK. As a result, most patients are now able to enjoy their best possible vision with minimal recovery time.

The human lens is situated inside the lens capsule, which is like an elastic bag that holds the lens in place. To remove the human lens, the front portion of the lens capsule is carefully opened. The human lens is gently broken apart into microscopic pieces using ultrasonic vibrations and vacuumed out of the lens capsule. This technique is called phacoemulsification. The lens capsule is left undisturbed so a tiny lens implant can be inserted in place of the original lens. Many types of lenses are used; most are made of either hard plastic or soft, foldable silicone. Patients will receive the lens best suited for them. A unique benefit of clear lens surgery is that after this type of surgery, you can never develop a "cataract" for the rest of your life! More people have had lens surgery than laser vision correction!

The Results of Clear Lens Surgery:

Clear lens surgery rivals laser vision correction for accuracy in the groups of patients we recommend it to. As a matter of fact, for high degrees of far or nearsightedness patients actually prefer the quality of vision for clear lens surgery because in general it is a more crisp vision with less symptoms of glare and haloes at night.

However, it should be recognized that just as laser vision correction is not 100% accurate in correcting all of the far or nearsightedness for high degrees of corrections, so is the case with clear lens extraction.

In our practice we find that we are 90% accurate in achieving the results we want. Some of this variability is dependent on how you heal. To achieve the best results possible we use very sophisticated state of the art software. Close to 90% of patients are able to drive without glasses following clear lens extraction. The remainder requires only a minimal correction. This is generally only a fraction of what they were wearing. In other words, they can function well without their glasses on.

"Fine tuning" of the result can be performed at a later date either by adding an adjustment lens into the eye or performing a small amount of laser vision correction if you are a candidate.

Reading Glasses After Surgery:

It should be stated that after the age of 45 the human lens in most people loses the ability to focus up close. This is why we need reading glasses or a "bi-focal". This means with your distance glasses on you will need a reading part to help you see up close. This condition is called presbyopia.

By removing the human lens in clear lens surgery, you may have the ability to focus up close without reading glasses if a special lens implant is used. In a number of other patients we may intentionally leave one eye nearsighted by a small amount to allow for intermediate reading without glasses. This is called mono vision and may not be for everyone.

Dr. Teahan will help you determine the best choice ahead of time.