Dr William Boothe about Good LASIK Candidates

Boothe Eye Care

Hyperopia or Hypermetropia- Many Hyperopic patients have difficulty seeing things up close, and often have crisp-acute distance vision.
Dr. Boothe Eye Care

WILL MY PROCEDURE BE PAINFUL?
Patients experience virtually no discomfort during the LASIK Vision Correction procedure. Eye drop anesthesia is used to numb the eye prior to the procedure, so no injections are necessary. Immediately after treatment, some patients have reported minor discomfort, like having an eyelash or a dry contact lens in their eye.
Lens- The lens of the eye is the body between the iris and the vitreous humor that focuses light rays entering through the pupil to form an image on the retina. You may also want to research presbyopia.

IOL or Intraocular Lens Implant- A lens is implanted in front of, or in place of, the eye's natural lens. IOLs may be a great option for patients with severe vision prescriptions.

Dr. Boothe Laser Center: LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis and is a procedure that permanently changes the shape of the cornea, the clear covering of the front of the eye, using an excimer laser. A mechanical microkeratome (a blade device) or a laser keratome (a laser device) is used to cut a flap in the cornea. A hinge is left at one end of this flap. The flap is folded back revealing the stroma, the middlesection of the cornea. Pulses from a computer-controlled laser vaporize a portion of the stroma and the flap is replaced. There are other techniques and many new terms related to LASIK that you may hear about.
Iris- The iris is the colored portion of the visible eye. It is a muscle that affects the size of the pupil, depending on the amount of light needed to enter the pupil.

Dr. William Boothe

Nearsightedness- Nearsightedness is another name for Myopia. Nearsighted people typically have difficulty seeing objects at a distance. Nearsightedness can be so severe that people have difficulty seeing objects up close too.


Good LASIK Candidates Must:
Be at Least 18 Years Old
Be in Good General Health
Have No Health Issues Affecting the Eyes
Have No Active Eye Conditions Which May Affect Healing
Have a Stable Vision Prescription for at Least One Year Dr. Boothe

Dry Eyes After LASIK - Some patients may experience dry eyes after LASIK and PRK. Often it is a temporary side effect during the healing process. If a patient is prone to dry eyes, our medical teams may discuss options with the patient, or discuss non-candidacy if the patient's eyes are too dry to have laser vision correction.
Dr. Boothe Eye Center
LASIK- LASIK is an acronym that allows us to quickly say, "laser assisted in situ keratomileusis." This is more simply said as "reshaping the cornea using a laser."

Dr. Boothe - Keratotomy

Dr. Boothe

Keratotomy- Keratos is the greek word for cornea, and otomy means to create an incision. Together they mean to create an incision in the cornea. Dr. Boothe Eye Care

Good LASIK Candidates Must:
Be at Least 18 Years Old
Be in Good General Health
Have No Health Issues Affecting the Eyes
Have No Active Eye Conditions Which May Affect Healing
Have a Stable Vision Prescription for at Least One Year

LASIK- LASIK is an acronym that allows us to quickly say, "laser assisted in situ keratomileusis." This is more simply said as "reshaping the cornea using a laser."


LASIK

LASIK is a more complex procedure than PRK. It is performed for all degrees of nearsightedness. The surgeon uses a knife called a microkeratome to cut a flap of corneal tissue, removes the targeted tissue beneath it with the laser, and then replaces the flap.
"With LASIK, the skill of the surgeon is important because he'll be making an incision," says Stephen Crawford, O.D., an optometrist practicing in Virginia, "compared to the PRK method where the machine does more of the work." Crawford urges people to find qualified, experienced doctors to perform this surgery. "You'll want someone who's done a number of LASIK procedures since this is a surgeon-dependent operation," he said.
According to Ken Taylor, O.D., vice president of Arthur D. Little, Inc., a technology and management consultant firm in Cambridge, Mass., "Last year, across the country, 40 to 45 percent of refractive surgeries performed by physicians were LASIK, which equates to approximately 80,000 procedures." Doctors not participating in clinical trials may choose to use the approved laser to perform LASIK procedures at their discretion, says Morris Waxler, Ph.D., chief of FDA's diagnostic and surgical devices section. But most uses are considered "off label" and are not regulated by FDA.

Boothe Eye Care: Other types of refractive surgery
Radial Keratotomy or RK and Photorefractive Keratectomy or PRK are other refractive surgeries used to reshape the cornea. In RK, a very sharp knife is used to cut slits in the cornea changing its shape. PRK was the first surgical procedure developed to reshape the cornea, by sculpting, using a laser. Later, LASIK was developed. The same type of laser is used for LASIK and PRK. Often the exact same laser is used for the two types of surgery. The major difference between the two surgeries is the way that the stroma, the middle layer of the cornea, is exposed before it is vaporized with the laser. In PRK, the top layer of the cornea, called the epithelium, is scraped away to expose the stromal layer underneath. In LASIK, a flap is cut in the stromal layer and the flap is folded back.
IOL or Intraocular Lens Implant- A lens is implanted in front of, or in place of, the eye's natural lens. IOLs may be a great option for patients with severe vision prescriptions.

Boothe Laser Center

Wavefront / Custom LASIK

At Laser Eye Center, our surgeons are the first to utilize LADARWavey® CUSTOMCORNEA® wavefront technology to measure and address both lower and higher order aberrations (visual imperfections in the eye's optical system). Unless both lower and higher order aberrations are addressed during laser vision correction, the quality of your vision may not be ideal, even if you have post-operative vision of 20/20.

Conductive Keratoplasty- CK is performed using a probe about the size of a human strand of hair, which release radiofrequency (RF) energy, shrinking the tissue to increase the curvature of the cornea. LasikPlus will not perform CK. Boothe Eye Center


Precision Surgery

PRK is an outpatient procedure generally performed with local anesthetic eye drops. This type of refractive surgery gently reshapes the cornea by removing microscopic amounts of tissue from the outer surface with a cool, computer-controlled ultraviolet beam of light. The beam is so precise it can cut notches in a strand of human hair without breaking it, and each pulse can remove 39 millionths of an inch of tissue in 12 billionths of a second. The procedure itself takes only a few minutes, and patients are typically back to daily routines in one to three days.
Before the procedure begins, the patient's eye is measured to determine the degree of visual problem, and a map of the eye's surface is constructed. The required corneal change is calculated based on this information, and then entered into the laser's computer.
Since 1995, a limited number of laser systems has been approved by FDA to treat various refractive errors, both with PRK and LASIK.
According to FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, clinical studies showed that about 5 percent of patients continued to always need glasses following PRK for distance, and up to 15 percent needed glasses occasionally, such as when driving. In addition, many patients experienced mild corneal haze following surgery, which is part of the normal healing process. The haze appeared to have little or no effect on final vision, and could only be seen by a doctor with a microscope. Some patients experienced glare and halos around lights. These conditions, however, diminished or disappeared in most patients in six months. For about 5 percent of patients, however, best-corrected vision without corrective lenses was slightly worse after surgery than before. In view of these findings, FDA and the Federal Trade Commission (which oversees advertising) issued a letter to the eye-care community in May 1996 warning that unrealistic advertising claims, such as "throw away your eyeglasses," and unsubstantiated claims about success rates could be misleading to consumers.
Dr. Boothe Eye Center What the FDA regulates
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the sale of medical devices such as the lasers used for LASIK. Before a medical device can be legally sold in the U.S., the person or company that wants to sell the device must seek approval from the FDA. To gain approval, they must present evidence that the device is reasonably safe and effective for a particular use, the "indication." Once the FDA has approved a medical device, a doctor may decide to use that device for other indications if the doctor feels it is in the best interest of a patient. The use of an approved device for other than its FDA-approved indication is called "off-label use." The FDA does not regulate off-label use or the practice of medicine.

Dr. Boothe about Presbyopia

Dr. Boothe Eye Center

Presbyopia- "Presbys" is Greek for "old man" and "opia" refers to the eye. Presbyopia typically occurs in our late thirties or early forties, and it can make reading things up close difficult. Our lenses lose their ability to accomodate, or change shape. Some patients may be good candidates for Monovision as an Alternative to Bilateral LASIK. Dr. Boothe Laser Center

Dry Eyes After LASIK - Some patients may experience dry eyes after LASIK and PRK. Often it is a temporary side effect during the healing process. If a patient is prone to dry eyes, our medical teams may discuss options with the patient, or discuss non-candidacy if the patient's eyes are too dry to have laser vision correction.
What the FDA regulates
In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the sale of medical devices such as the lasers used for LASIK. Before a medical device can be legally sold in the U.S., the person or company that wants to sell the device must seek approval from the FDA. To gain approval, they must present evidence that the device is reasonably safe and effective for a particular use, the "indication." Once the FDA has approved a medical device, a doctor may decide to use that device for other indications if the doctor feels it is in the best interest of a patient. The use of an approved device for other than its FDA-approved indication is called "off-label use." The FDA does not regulate off-label use or the practice of medicine.
Microkeratome- A blade that creates a flap in the cornea during LASIK Surgery.

Boothe Eye Care: Monovision- When one eye is deliberately corrected for distance vision and the other for close vision.

The FDA does not have the authority to:

Regulate a doctor's practice. In other words, FDA does not tell doctors what to do when running their business or what they can or cannot tell their patients.
Set the amount a doctor can charge for LASIK eye surgery.
"Insist" the patient information booklet from the laser manufacturer be provided to the potential patient.
Make recommendations for individual doctors, clinics, or eye centers. FDA does not maintain nor have access to any such list of doctors performing LASIK eye surgery.
Conduct or provide a rating system on any medical device it regulates.
The first refractive laser systems approved by FDA were excimer lasers for use in PRK to treat myopia and later to treat astigmatism. However, doctors began using these lasers for LASIK (not just PRK), and to treat other refractive errors (not just myopia). Over the last several years, LASIK has become the main surgery doctors use to treat myopia in the United States. More recently, some laser manufacturers have gained FDA approval for laser systems for LASIK to treat myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism and for PRK to treat hyperopia and astigmatism.

Dr. William Boothe

LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis and is a procedure that permanently changes the shape of the cornea, the clear covering of the front of the eye, using an excimer laser. A mechanical microkeratome (a blade device) or a laser keratome (a laser device) is used to cut a flap in the cornea. A hinge is left at one end of this flap. The flap is folded back revealing the stroma, the middlesection of the cornea. Pulses from a computer-controlled laser vaporize a portion of the stroma and the flap is replaced. There are other techniques and many new terms related to LASIK that you may hear about.
IOL or Intraocular Lens Implant- A lens is implanted in front of, or in place of, the eye's natural lens. IOLs may be a great option for patients with severe vision prescriptions.
Boothe Eye Center
Other types of refractive surgery
Radial Keratotomy or RK and Photorefractive Keratectomy or PRK are other refractive surgeries used to reshape the cornea. In RK, a very sharp knife is used to cut slits in the cornea changing its shape. PRK was the first surgical procedure developed to reshape the cornea, by sculpting, using a laser. Later, LASIK was developed. The same type of laser is used for LASIK and PRK. Often the exact same laser is used for the two types of surgery. The major difference between the two surgeries is the way that the stroma, the middle layer of the cornea, is exposed before it is vaporized with the laser. In PRK, the top layer of the cornea, called the epithelium, is scraped away to expose the stromal layer underneath. In LASIK, a flap is cut in the stromal layer and the flap is folded back.
Boothe Laser Center Myopia- Myopic people typically have difficulty seeing objects at a distance. Myopia can be so severe that people have difficulty seeing objects up close too.

Dr. Boothe about Corneal Epithelium

Dr. Boothe Laser Center

HOW LONG WILL MY LASIK PROCEDURE TAKE?
The LASIK procedure time is between five and fifteen minutes. We ask our patients to plan to be with us for approximately two hours on the day of their treatment. This gives our medical team adequate time for your procedure preparation, additional paperwork, final examination, and give you an opportunity to ask questions after your vision correction. Dr. Boothe Eye Center

Keratomileusis- Keratos is the greek word for cornea, and mileusis means to reshape. Together they mean to reshape the cornea.
Microkeratome- A blade that creates a flap in the cornea during LASIK Surgery.


What is LASIK?
The eye and vision errors
The cornea is a part of the eye that helps focus light to create an image on the retina. It works in much the same way that the lens of a camera focuses light to create an image on film. The bending and focusing of light is also known as refraction. Usually the shape of the cornea and the eye are not perfect and the image on the retina is out-of-focus (blurred) or distorted. These imperfections in the focusing power of the eye are called refractive errors. There are three primary types of refractive errors: myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism. Persons with myopia, or nearsightedness, have more difficulty seeing distant objects as clearly as near objects. Persons with hyperopia, or farsightedness, have more difficulty seeing near objects as clearly as distant objects. Astigmatism is a distortion of the image on the retina caused by irregularities in the cornea or lens of the eye. Combinations of myopia and astigmatism or hyperopia and astigmatism are common. Glasses or contact lenses are designed to compensate for the eye's imperfections. Surgical procedures aimed at improving the focusing power of the eye are called refractive surgery. In LASIK surgery, precise and controlled removal of corneal tissue by a special laser reshapes the cornea changing its focusing power.
Boothe Laser Center: LADAR

Using laser and radar technology developed by NASA, LADARVision® was the first approved system with active eye tracking, which compensates for involuntary eye movements. Although other laser systems have now developed eye-tracking systems, LADARVision® has the only system utilizing laser radar tracking technology, a system that measures eye movement 4,000 times each second and is capable of following eye movements regardless of how rapid or erratic they may be. Successful laser application does not rely on your ability to hold your eye perfectly still.

LASIK

LASIK is a more complex procedure than PRK. It is performed for all degrees of nearsightedness. The surgeon uses a knife called a microkeratome to cut a flap of corneal tissue, removes the targeted tissue beneath it with the laser, and then replaces the flap.
"With LASIK, the skill of the surgeon is important because he'll be making an incision," says Stephen Crawford, O.D., an optometrist practicing in Virginia, "compared to the PRK method where the machine does more of the work." Crawford urges people to find qualified, experienced doctors to perform this surgery. "You'll want someone who's done a number of LASIK procedures since this is a surgeon-dependent operation," he said.
According to Ken Taylor, O.D., vice president of Arthur D. Little, Inc., a technology and management consultant firm in Cambridge, Mass., "Last year, across the country, 40 to 45 percent of refractive surgeries performed by physicians were LASIK, which equates to approximately 80,000 procedures." Doctors not participating in clinical trials may choose to use the approved laser to perform LASIK procedures at their discretion, says Morris Waxler, Ph.D., chief of FDA's diagnostic and surgical devices section. But most uses are considered "off label" and are not regulated by FDA.

Boothe Eye Center

Keratotomy- Keratos is the greek word for cornea, and otomy means to create an incision. Together they mean to create an incision in the cornea.
Refractive Error- This word refers to vision problems associated with the cornea: Astigmatism, Hyperopia, and Myopia. Boothe Eye Care


Precision Surgery

PRK is an outpatient procedure generally performed with local anesthetic eye drops. This type of refractive surgery gently reshapes the cornea by removing microscopic amounts of tissue from the outer surface with a cool, computer-controlled ultraviolet beam of light. The beam is so precise it can cut notches in a strand of human hair without breaking it, and each pulse can remove 39 millionths of an inch of tissue in 12 billionths of a second. The procedure itself takes only a few minutes, and patients are typically back to daily routines in one to three days.
Before the procedure begins, the patient's eye is measured to determine the degree of visual problem, and a map of the eye's surface is constructed. The required corneal change is calculated based on this information, and then entered into the laser's computer.
Since 1995, a limited number of laser systems has been approved by FDA to treat various refractive errors, both with PRK and LASIK.
According to FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, clinical studies showed that about 5 percent of patients continued to always need glasses following PRK for distance, and up to 15 percent needed glasses occasionally, such as when driving. In addition, many patients experienced mild corneal haze following surgery, which is part of the normal healing process. The haze appeared to have little or no effect on final vision, and could only be seen by a doctor with a microscope. Some patients experienced glare and halos around lights. These conditions, however, diminished or disappeared in most patients in six months. For about 5 percent of patients, however, best-corrected vision without corrective lenses was slightly worse after surgery than before. In view of these findings, FDA and the Federal Trade Commission (which oversees advertising) issued a letter to the eye-care community in May 1996 warning that unrealistic advertising claims, such as "throw away your eyeglasses," and unsubstantiated claims about success rates could be misleading to consumers.
Dr. Boothe Eye Care Corneal Epithelium- The corneal epithelium is the thin, protective layer encasing the eyeball. Prior to LASIK eye surgery, the epithelium must be lifted or polished away to expose the underlying cornea. The epithelium is regenerative and heals quickly.

Dr. Boothe about Myopia

Boothe Eye Care

Lens- The lens of the eye is the body between the iris and the vitreous humor that focuses light rays entering through the pupil to form an image on the retina. You may also want to research presbyopia.
Dr. William Boothe
Corneal Epithelium- The corneal epithelium is the thin, protective layer encasing the eyeball. Prior to LASIK eye surgery, the epithelium must be lifted or polished away to expose the underlying cornea. The epithelium is regenerative and heals quickly.

LASEK- Or epi-LASIK, may be a Laser Eye Surgery option for patients with thinner corneal epithelia. A solution is used to raise the epithelium. A "bubble" forms through the center of the microkeratome, making it safe to create a flap. After the laser application, the flap is repositioned on the cornea and held in place by a soft, non-prescription contact lens.


Optician- An optician makes glasses and performs adjustments on frames.
Dr. Boothe: Nearsighted, Myopia:
People can typically see things up close, but things far away may appear blurred. People who are nearsighted may find a negative number in the sphere column of their prescription.
Refractive Error- This word refers to vision problems associated with the cornea: Astigmatism, Hyperopia, and Myopia.

Dr. Boothe Eye Care:Farsightedness

Farsightedness is another name for Hyperopia or Hypermetropia. Many Farsighted patients have difficulty seeing things up close, and often have crisp-acute distance vision.
LADAR

Using laser and radar technology developed by NASA, Boothe Laser Center was the first approved system with active eye tracking, which compensates for involuntary eye movements. Although other laser systems have now developed eye-tracking systems, Boothe Laser Center has the only system utilizing laser radar tracking technology, a system that measures eye movement 4,000 times each second and is capable of following eye movements regardless of how rapid or erratic they may be. Successful laser application does not rely on your ability to hold your eye perfectly still.

Boothe Laser Center: Wavefront / Custom LASIK

At Boothe Laser Center, our surgeons are the first to utilize LADARWavey® CUSTOMCORNEA® wavefront technology to measure and address both lower and higher order aberrations (visual imperfections in the eye's optical system). Unless both lower and higher order aberrations are addressed during laser vision correction, the quality of your vision may not be ideal, even if you have post-operative vision of 20/20.

Boothe Eye Center & LASIK

One of the most popular ways to correct vision is with a procedure called LASIK (laser in-situ keratomileusis), which uses a laser to change the curvature of the cornea (outer window of the eye). LASIK has quickly become the procedure of choice for most patients because they recover quickly and have fewer side effects and complications than with other methods of vision correction. In fact, most LASIK patients notice a significant improvement in their vision soon after surgery. LASIK removes tissue within the cornea to treat low to high levels of nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.