Americans, Canadians and Europeans seeking Lasik procedures no longer have to worry about exaggerated costs, limited or no health insurance coverage, and long waiting lines. The current condition of medical care in developed countries has paved the way for medical tourism abroad. Highly qualified doctors and surgeons in Turkey, who have been educated in some of the top universities in America and elsewhere, hold clinical positions at state-of-the-art medical facilities that cater mainly to medical tourists. Turkey´s medical institutions utilize the newest medical technology and are run by some of the most skilled and qualified medical professionals.
What is LASIK?
LASIK is an acronym for Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis. It is s type of refractive eye surgery used to correct vision and eliminate the need for eyeglasses and contact lenses.
How does LASIK work?
When the eye is seeing correctly, the multiple light rays that enter it are refracted (bent) by the cornea and lens, to converge at the retina in the back of the eye and create an image, which is then translated into neurosignals that the brain recognizes as vision. Although these light rays are supposed to converge at the retina, if the light rays are being refracted at the wrong angle, the image is distorted and vision problems result, such as myopia (near-sightedness) or hypermetropia (far-sightedness).
The goal of refractive surgery is to change the angle of refraction of the light rays passing though the cornea, so that they correctly converge at the retina and restore proper vision. During a LASIK operation, this is done by changing the shape of the cornea by carefully vaporizing the tissue with a laser. To correct myopia, the center of the cornea can be made more flat by removing more tissue from the center than from the edge. To correct hyperopia, the center of the cornea can be made more curved by removing more tissue from the edge than from the center.
The Procedure and Recovery
Before the procedure, a local anaesthetic is administered, usually in the form of eye drops, to numb the eye. Special tools are used to hold the eye in place and prevent blinking, and then a special cutting tool called a microkeratome is used to cut a very thin flap in the cornea. The flap is then opened and the reshaping begings.
The LASIK procedure itself is not uncomfortable or painful. The patient is awake during the procedure, and the process is completed in just a few minutes. You will need to where a protective pad for about 24 hours. You may experience blurred vision for one to two days, after which time you can return to work or normal activity. Slight blurriness may persist but it should stabilize after about one month.
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