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LASIK and PRK – Eye Surgery for Boerne, Hill Country, and San Antonio Residents
LASIK eye surgery and PRK are offered to Hill Country and San Antonio-area residents in Boerne at Diaz Vision Center. LASIK and PRK can be used to correct imperfections in the cornea. These imperfections cause refractive errors such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism, which have historically been corrected using glasses or contacts. At one time, corrective lenses were the only solution available, but refractive eye surgery gives patients affected by refractive errors exciting new options. After undergoing LASIK or PRK eye surgery, patients will enjoy increased freedom through clearer vision.
LASIK Eye Surgery
LASIK is an eye surgery that uses precise bursts of laser energy to reshape the cornea, improving the eye's focusing ability. By reshaping the cornea to compensate for the imperfections that cause refractive errors, Dr. Diaz can help LASIK eye surgery patients at his practice serving Boerne, the Hill Country, San Antonio, and surrounding areas obtain clear vision at various distances, reducing or eliminating the need for corrective lenses.
LASIK Candidates
One of the biggest advantages of LASIK eye surgery is that it is safe and effective for the majority of adults. LASIK patients must be at least 18 years old to ensure that the eye has developed fully. The candidate's vision must have been stable for at least one year before eye surgery, with no eye infection or injury during that time. If there is scarring on the cornea, LASIK is not a good option.
In order to be a good candidate for LASIK, the patient cannot have an autoimmune disorder or a history of herpes infections in the eye. Women who are pregnant or nursing should wait to have eye surgery until after pregnancy and nursing are complete. Individuals with dry eye syndrome or pupils that dilate beyond seven millimeters should explore other eye surgery options, as LASIK will not work well for them.
Additionally, pilots, athletes, and others who are at a higher risk of corneal injury should avoid LASIK, as the patient's cornea may be somewhat weaker after the procedure. PRK is frequently a good alternative for those who are not good LASIK candidates.
The LASIK Procedure
The LASIK procedure is quick, safe, and generally described as pain-free. The eye surgery itself typically takes no more than 15 minutes, though the whole process takes about an hour. Dr. Diaz will first administer anesthetic eye drops to ensure the patient's comfort throughout the procedure. The patient will lie on a table beneath the laser equipment during the procedure. Each eye will be treated individually while being held open by a speculum.
The first stage of LASIK eye surgery is to create the corneal flap. Dr. Diaz will ask the patient to focus on a small blinking light while he uses a laser to cut the flap and expose the inner layers of the cornea for treatment. This technique, known as the IntraLase® method, is more precise than using a blade to create the flap.
After creating the flap, Dr. Diaz will use an excimer laser to remove small amounts of tissue from the cornea, reshaping it for better, more even focusing power. The laser reshaping process takes only about 15 seconds per eye. Once he has reshaped the cornea, Dr. Diaz will close the flap to complete the procedure.
Post-LASIK Recovery
Most patients recover quickly from LASIK eye surgery. Patients will begin to have functional vision the day after the procedure. Some patients may have trouble reading or seeing at distance for a few days. These problems are only temporary, and the patient's vision should continue to improve as the eyes stabilize over the next one to three months.
Dr. Diaz will give each LASIK eye surgery patient at his Boerne office in the Hill Country a protective eye shield to wear while sleeping for the first few nights after the surgery. Some patients will also need to use antibiotic, anti-inflammatory, or moisturizing eye drops for a while after the procedure.
PRK Eye Surgery
PRK is one of the most well-established and extensively used refractive surgeries available, and Dr. Diaz offers PRK to residents of the San Antonio and Hill Country areas who wish to undergo refractive surgery but are not good candidates for LASIK. Like LASIK, PRK is an eye surgery used to correct refractive errors. Patients generally require more time to heal from PRK than they do with LASIK, but many patients who are unable to undergo LASIK eye surgery due to various corneal conditions are good candidates for PRK. Both procedures enjoy similarly high success rates and degrees of safety.
PRK Candidates
Most adults are good candidates for PRK. In order to undergo PRK, patients must be over 18 and have stable vision for at least one year before surgery. Patients with abnormalities of the cornea or external eye or who are pregnant or nursing are not good candidates for PRK.
Many individuals who have thin corneas, a characteristic that makes them poor candidates for LASIK, can safely undergo PRK. Corneal scarring, which makes LASIK eye surgery impossible, does not rule out the PRK procedure. The same is true for certain corneal dystrophies and recurrent corneal erosion. PRK is also a good option for pilots, athletes, and others who should not undergo LASIK due to the risk of corneal weakness if the LASIK flap heals poorly.
The PRK Procedure
Like LASIK eye surgery, PRK is designed to reshape the cornea so as to correct refractive errors that affect the patient's vision. Unlike LASIK, however, the PRK procedure does not involve creating a flap to access the inner layers of the cornea; instead, the outer layers are removed entirely and allowed to re-grow after the procedure.
After applying anesthetic eye drops to prevent discomfort, Dr. Diaz uses precision laser equipment to remove the outer layer, known as the corneal epithelium, and expose the corneal stroma for reshaping. After the stroma has been reshaped, the procedure is complete. PRK, as performed by Dr. Diaz for San Antonio and Hill Country-area residents, takes no more than an hour, and the actual procedure is only about 15 minutes long.
Post-PRK Recovery
The biggest disadvantage that PRK has compared to LASIK eye surgery is that it takes longer to recover after the PRK procedure. Recovery is also somewhat more uncomfortable for PRK patients than it is for LASIK patients.
The corneal epithelium must re-grow, and while it does, recovering patients will need to wear protective contact lenses. Dr Diaz also recommends that his patients use antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops during recovery. At this time, patients may also experience fluctuating vision as the epithelium re-grows. This is normal, and vision should stabilize over time.
Learn More about LASIK and PRK
PRK and LASIK eye surgery allow individuals affected by myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism to become less reliant on corrective lenses for clear vision. At Diaz Vision Center, we perform PRK and LASIK eye surgery for residents of Boerne, the Hill Country, and the San Antonio area. If you are interested in learning more about laser corrective surgery, please contact Diaz Vision Center today.
Contact Diaz Vision Center to learn about PRK and LASIK eye surgery. We serve Boerne, San Antonio, and the Hill Country.
Diaz Vision Center, PA
124 E Bandera Rd, #404
Boerne, TX 78006
Ph. 830-249-8400
Fx. 830-249-8411