Bladeless LASIK

What is IntraLase?
Regular LASIK is not the best option for everybody. Your LASIK surgeon will screen their patients carefully to avoid performing risky procedures. This used to mean many people could not have refractive surgery because their eyes put them into the high risk category.
Recently, ophthalmologists have invented new ways of delivering LASIK, making it safe enough to treat a larger pool of candidates. IntraLase is one of those new methods.

The Flap about Flaps
The most frequent LASIK complications are a result of the corneal flap created at the beginning of the operation. A LASIK procedure makes a thin corneal flap and folds it back out of the way. Thus accessing the next layer down called the stroma.

The contour and thickness of your cornea are particularly important in determining if LASIK is for you. Too thin or myopic and LASIK could be dangerous. The cornea needs enough thickness to allow for the flap plus the removal of tissue for contouring, and still have enough material left to hold strong against the eye’s internal pressure without pushing forward.
It also has to be flat enough to allow the microkeratome to safely create the flap without cutting too deeply. An extremely myopic cornea has a steep curvature.

Bladeless LASIK
One of the names for IntraLase is “bladeless” because it uses a second laser to create the flap instead of a microkeratome. This helps because the laser is pulsed super-fast. Once it’s set it penetrates the cornea at a specific depth. These pulses are directed to the treatment area, covering the entire area, back and forth, making bubbles until an entire flap is loosened and can be easily lifted. This treatment plan allows for enough corneal thickness to remain post surgery, and the replaced flap after treatment heals up as in a traditional LASIK surgery.