Refractive Eye Surgery
Kansas City, St. Louis (Creve Coeur), Missouri

Understanding refractive errors

Nearsightedness
Nearsightedness (Myopia) occurs when the cornea is excessively curved or the eye is too long. This causes light to focus in front of the retina, resulting in blurry vision when viewing distant objects.

Farsightedness
Farsightedness (Hyperopia) develops when the cornea is too flat in relation to the rest of the eye. This causes light to focus at a point beyond the retina, which results in close objects appearing to be blurry; though distant objects can at times be distorted by hyperopia as well.

Astigmatism
Astigmatism exists when the cornea is shaped like a football (more curved in one direction than the other) and often occurs alongside preexisting conditions of nearsightedness or farsightedness. Astigmatism causes light to focus in more than one point on the retina, resulting in blurry and distorted vision.

Understanding the LASIK procedure

LASIK surgery, or laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis, is one of today’s most popular vision correction procedures because of its great versatility. It can correct nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism for a broad range of prescriptions. LASIK corrects vision by reshaping the cornea, which allows light to focus more precisely on the retina, resulting in improved vision.

The LASIK Procedure, Step by Step

Step 1 – Using advanced technology, your eyes and their visual fields are mapped out entirely. This customized and extremely detailed information is then reviewed by Dr. Wiles and transferred directly to the laser.

Step 2 – The cornea of the eye is numbed with eye drops and the eyelids are gently held open to prevent blinking. Using a microkeratome, Dr. Wiles creates a thin flap from the outer corneal layers of the eye, this flap is then gently folded back and away from the eye.

Step 3 – Dr. Wiles uses an Excimer laser, which emits a cool beam of light upon the eye, to gently reshape the cornea.

Step 4 – Finally, the protective flap that was created in Step Two is gently placed back in its original position. Your eyes will begin to heal immediately and visual improvements are often seen right after the procedure or the very next day!

Technology

Four laser technologies - One ideal treatment

No one laser is a perfect fit for every LASIK procedure, which is why Lasik-1 provides four distinct laser technologies for vision correction. Our advanced lasers give Dr. Wiles the ability to customize your procedure to give you the best possible outcome. It’s our belief that having options to choose from is the best path to a successful treatment.

VISX Star S4 IR laser

We are committed to offering you the latest in vision correction technology. One of the lasers we use is the advanced VISX® Star S4 IR laser which has many exclusive features:

Variable Spot Scanning (VSS) – Produces seven variable sized treatment beams, allowing our doctors greater flexibility for faster, smoother treatments.

3D ActiveTrak™ - Automatically tracks the tiny motions of your eye in all three dimensions, providing your surgeon with additional control and precision while performing your procedure.

WavePrint™ - The VISX WaveScan® allows us to create a map, or “fingerprint,” of your entire visual path called a WavePrint™ map. This advanced technology shows us the minute details of your vision, allowing us to treat even the tiniest irregularities in your vision.

Iris Registration – Aligns and adjusts the laser to compensate for any rotation in the eye that occurs when a patient lies down during the procedure. This ensures the treatment aligns with the WavePrint™ map created during the consultation, which greatly improves the overall precision of the vision correction.

VISX® CustomVue™

With this system, we can treat more than simple nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. CustomVue™ allows us to analyze your eyes’ specific irregularities with 25 times more accuracy than standard measurements used for glasses or contacts, to completely customize your treatment.

With CustomVue, patients have the potential to see better than they ever have before with glasses or contacts and with better night vision. In fact, a recent clinical study showed that patients who were very satisfied with their night vision after surgery quadrupled the number of patients who were very satisfied with their night vision while using glasses or contacts.

Bausch & Lomb Technolas 217z laser

Another laser on the forefront of technological advances in LASIK surgery, the Bausch & Lomb system provides excellent results for our patients. In fact, the Bausch & Lomb system is so effective that in a recent clinical study, over 91% of the subjects tested achieved 20/20 vision or better. Technolas is one of the most popular LASIK technologies worldwide, and has been used in well over 200,000 procedures to date.

Flying Spot Laser- Unlike broad beam Excimer laser technology, flying spot lasers contact the cornea with the entirety of their beams every time they touch the eye. This produces a smoother, more uniform shape to the cornea and increases the accuracy and effectiveness of the surgery.

Bausch & Lomb Zyoptix System

Combining advanced Technolas technology with advanced customizing methods, the Bausch & Lomb Zyoptix system can bring about excellent results for our patients. Your eyes are complex - even the slightest imperfection in their shape or composition can alter your, and the Zyoptix system was designed to treat these imperfections. Before your LASIK procedure, Zyoptix technology allows Dr. Wiles to map out thousands of data points on your eyes, providing him with a fully detailed, three-dimensional image of your cornea’s characteristics and overall shape. From there, Dr. Wiles can custom tailor the treatment to your eyes’ specific needs. In fact, the Zyoptix system is so effective that in a clinical trial of the system, not one patient expressed any dissatisfaction with the results they received.

Zyoptix Zylink Software- Provides advanced features that streamline the process of analyzing and correcting vision irregularities, meaning your surgery takes less time to complete. By providing a remarkably detailed, three-dimensional image of the entire surface of your cornea, the Zyoptix system also allows for your surgeon to clearly recognize and correct even the smallest imperfections in the shape of your eye. All of this, coupled with advanced Bausch & Lomb laser technology, leads to a higher quality of vision following your surgery.Are you a LASIK candidate?

ARE YOU A LASIK CANDIDATE?

A lot of factors go in to determining whether or not someone can benefit from LASIK surgery. The only way to truly know is to schedule your comprehensive VIP LASIK examination, but there are three questions you can ask yourself before moving forward.

÷ Are you over 18?

÷ Have you had stable vision for the past year?

÷ Is your goal to see clearly without glasses or contacts?

If you answered yes to all of these questions, your next step will be to schedule your free VIP examination. At this exam we will perform all of the necessary tests to determine if you are a good fit for LASIK, and if LASIK is a good fit for you. Click here to schedule your VIP LASIK Exam!