LASIK in North Carolina

Thanks to advances in laser technology and medical training, people who suffer from certain eye ailments can finally get relief from always wearing glasses. Previously, laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis or <a href=http://www.horizoneye.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/site.content/type/24693.cfm>LASIK</a> was available only to the very wealthy. Now through greater competition and lower prices it is now widely available to the masses. If you are ready to give up your glasses or <a href=http://www.horizoneye.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/site.content/type/24742.cfm>contact lenses</a> for the freedom of good eyesight, now is a great time to explore the benefits of LASIK eye surgery.

LASIK eye surgery is a common treatment for refractive errors of the eye, including:

• Myopia (nearsightedness)
• Hyperopia (farsightedness)
• Astigmatism

Treating and Myopia with LASIK

Approximately 30 percent of the population experience nearsightedness, which is traditionally treated with prescription glasses or contact lenses. In a normal eye, light passed through the cornea and the lens of the eye, converging on the retina, recording a sharp clear picture that your brain interprets. Myopia is a condition resulting from one of two conditions:

• Elongated eye
• Steep cornea

With these conditions, the light converges in front of the retina, causing blurry images for objects at a distance. Prescription glasses are used to correct the refraction and return the focus to the proper location on the retina. Using this same theory, LASIK corrects the focus in the same way be reshaping the cornea to do the same thing.

Treating Hyperopia with LASIK

Hyperopia is basically the opposite of myopia. Instead of the light refracting and focusing in front of the retina, the convergence occurs at a point behind the retina. Approximately 40% of adults have hyperopia to some degree. Conditions that lead to hyperopia are:

• Shortened eye
• Shallow cornea

Treating Astigmatism with LASIK

A typical cornea is rounded like a ball. With astigmatism, the cornea is shaped like a football or has a wrinkle that causes the light to refract erratically.

• In a regular astigmatism, the foci are 180 degrees opposite along the vertical or horizontal axis.
• Irregular astigmatism, which is typically caused by outside forces, disease, or injury, may have one or more foci in various locations that are asymmetrical.

How LASIK Treatment Works

LASIK uses the same theories for vision correction that are used in glasses and contacts. The difference is that the laser directly reshapes the cornea to correct the refraction.

During the procedure:

• A flap is made at the front of the cornea and folded back
• The laser, guided by a computer mapping is makes precise cuts in a predetermined pattern to reshape the cornea
• The flap is replaced and also acts as a natural bandage over the corrected cornea

If you suffer from myopia, hyperopia with or without astigmatism and you want to get rid of eyeglasses or contact lenses, you should consider LASIK eye surgery. To find a Charlotte LASIK eye doctor please visit the website of Horizon Eye Care today.

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