Lasik Surgery
Treatment

AUKER EYE INSTITUTE BASED IN PLEASANTON OFFERS EXPERT LASIK SURGERY.

About Our Lasik Eye Treament

What is Lasik Surgery?

LASIK, which stands for Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis, is a more recent advance in Laser Vision Correction. LASIK has been performed internationally for over 12 years and was first performed in the U.S. in 1991 during clinical trials. In LASIK surgery, precisely controlled removal of corneal tissue by a special laser reshapes the cornea. By changing the cornea’s focusing power, the need for glasses or contact lenses is often eliminated. Though LASIK is a relatively new procedure, Ophthalmologists have been reshaping the cornea for vision correction for over 50 years and have been using the excimer laser (used in LASIK) since the 1980’s.

At the Auker Eye Institute, we embrace technologies as soon as they are clinically proven and approved by the FDA. We use the latest tracking lasers available to assure the highest level of safety and best results for our patients. Contact us for a lasik evaluation here.

How Lasik Works

The LASIK procedure involves using a computer-controlled laser to reshape the cornea and correct refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. The eye surgeon starts by placing a numbing drop in the eye to make the patient more comfortable, then the area around the eye is cleaned. Next, a tool called a lid speculum is used to keep the eyes open during surgery.

At Auker Eye Institute, Dr. Auker use laser keratome (All-Laser LASIK) to create a flap of tissue on the cornea. This flap is lifted and folded back. The excimer laser is then used to reshape the cornea by removing or ablating tissue beneath the flap. The amount of tissue removed depends on the patient’s eyeglass or contact lens prescription. Then, the flap is gently re-positioned onto the underlying cornea without sutures. The entire bladeless LASIK procedure takes about 10 minutes, and most patients experience a quick, virtually painless procedure.

What is Custom Lasik?

Custom LASIK is also known as Wavefront LASIK or Wavefront-guided LASIK. Custom LASIK treatment uses the latest technology called “Wavefront” technology to create a 3-dimensional image of your eye. It performs a detailed analysis of your entire visual system to give Dr. Auker additional information about your eyes. He then will customize and individualized your laser vision treament to be achieved optimal results that are not able to be achieved with Traditional LASIK surgery. Custom LASIK has been shown to provide patients with greater chance of achieving 20/20 vision, less incidence of glare, halos and night vision disturbances.

Wavefront LASIK Surgery with the Allegretto Wave Eye-Q Laser

Custom wavefront LASIK with the WaveLight® ALLEGRETTO WAVE® Eye-Q Laser utilizes an active eye-tracking system that enables the laser beam to track patients’ eye movements during LASIK surgery and provide a customized procedure and outcome for each individual patient. This ensures accurate beam placement and provides patients with a more relaxed experience, as eye movement will not affect the procedure.

WaveLight® refractive technology also makes it possible for Dr. Auker to correct a larger area of the cornea than is possible using other platforms. Conventional lasers treat a portion of the cornea that is only about six to eight millimeters in diameter, but the WaveLight® ALLEGRETTO WAVE® Eye-Q Laser allows Dr. Auker to treat areas as wide as nine millimeters. This minimizes the glare, halos, and other night vision problems that can occur following LASIK surgery, when the pupil expands and becomes larger than the corrected area of the cornea.

Who is a good candidate Lasik surgery?

The LASIK procedure has been able to provide millions of people with clear, hassle-free vision, but it is important to understand that not everyone is a qualified candidate. Dr. Auker will only recommend LASIK for the very best candidates.

In order to be qualified for LASIK it is important that patients meet the following requirements:

Stable vision for 2-3 years
Over the age of 18
Nearsighted, farsighted, or have astigmatism
No current eye problems
No health issues that may affect the eyes

Each set of eyes is unique and that it is why it is extremely important to have your eyes examined by a board-certified ophthalmologist, like Dr. Auker. Please call us if you have any questions or would like to schedule a LASIK evaluation.

Other Types of Refractive Procedures

At Auker Eye Institute, we believe in offering our patients with as much choice as possible. We offer other types of refractive procedures in addition to the popular Lasik procedure.

Lasek:

LASEK (laser epithelial keratomileusis) is a relatively new procedure that is technically a variation of PRK while incorporating some of the advantages of LASIK. Also called epithelial LASIK or E-LASIK, LASEK is primarily used in patients whose corneas are either too thin or too flat for LASIK. By eliminating the use of a flap maker needed to create a thicker flap, we can avoid the increased risk in these conditions. Additionally, evidence supports the long-term safety of surface laser procedures such as LASEK and PRK is excellent. Patients who do have thin corneas should be advised that there are excellent alternatives to LASIK.

After Lasek:

In many ways, what you can expect from LASEK is similar to what you can expect from LASIK, but there are some differences. You may feel eye irritation during the first day or so afterward. Also, the time it takes to recover good vision is often longer — up to four to seven days. Typically, you will wear a therapeutic contact lens during this recovery process. Additionally, like PRK, LASEK is often performed on one eye at a time. After visual recovery is achieved in the first eye, the second eye can be treated so that vision is maximized during the whole treatment process.

Why Lasek:

LASEK is an option that your refractive surgeon must consider during your comprehensive and personalized evaluation. At the Auker Eye Institute, we are absolutely committed to providing you with both the best visual outcome and highest level of safety.

PRK:

A recent development in vision correction is a procedure called Photorefractive Keratectomy or PRK. This procedure is similar toLASIK but entails applying the excimer laser to the surface of the cornea without creating a flap. Instead, the PRK process uses an excimer laser to sculpt an area 5 to 9 millimeters in diameter on the surface of the eye.

How PRK Works:

This process removes only 5-10% of the thickness of the cornea for mild to moderate myopia and up to 30% for extreme myopia – about the thickness of 1 to 3 human hairs. The major benefit of this procedure is that the integrity and the strength of the corneal dome is retained. The excimer laser is set at a wavelength of 193nm, which can remove a microscopic corneal cell layer without damaging any adjoining cells. This allows for extremely accurate and specific modifications to the cornea with little trauma to the eye.

This is a proven, safe and excellent refractive surgery choice, especially for those with thin corneas, older age, dry eyes, as well as those who wish to avoid the surgical incision associated with LASIK. But greater patience and recovery time is required for this procedure when compared to LASIK.

After PRK:

Immediately after surgery some people have discomfort, although the use of bandage contact lenses and medications usually controls this. Light sensitivity is almost universal and halos and other unusual light effects can occur. Vision can be reduced while healing and from the intended overcorrection. Medical professionals and their associates consider this treatment as experimental as long-term side effects are not yet known. You must fully understand and discuss and all of these possible side effects and problems with your surgeon prior to surgery.

Potential Problems:

The Eye and Vision

The cornea is the front part of the eye that acts as a powerful focusing lens to create an image on the retina, much in the same way a camera lens focuses light to form an image on film. This bending and focusing of light is called refraction. Often, the shape of the cornea is not perfect and the image projected onto the retina is distorted or out of focus (blurred). These imperfections are classified into three categories of refractive error.

Myopia:

Commonly known as nearsightedness, this condition is caused by an overpowered eye that focuses the visual image in front of the retina. This results in a defocused and therefore blurred image at the retina. People with myopia have difficulty seeing far objects clearly without refractive correction. Close objects are more easily seen without additional focusing or correction.

Hyperopia:

Commonly known as farsightedness, this condition is caused by an underpowered eye that focuses the light behind the retina. The result can be a defocused and therefore blurred image at the retina. Hyperopic individuals unknowingly compensate for this by focusing the intraocular lens to bring the image into focus at the retina. Some “hyperopes” benefit from refractive correction at a young age; others only require refractive correction as they age a bit. As we age, we lose the ability to change the shape of the intraocular lens (presbyopia). Individuals with hyperopia first notice that they have more difficulty seeing near objects than farther ones. Over time, the hyperopia is fully evident and these individuals even need correction to see their best at a distance.

Astigmatism:

Commonly confused for a disease of the eye, astigmatism refers to a misshapen cornea or lens of the eye causing images to be focused in different focal planes or locations. This variable refractive power of the eye results in a distorted image at the retina regardless of the distance of the object viewed from the eye. Astigmatism often accompanies near and farsightedness.

Presbyopia:

No one is spared the aging effects on the intraocular lens of the eye and we all lose the ability to change the shape of this focusing lens in the eye. Known as presbyopia, this condition is a separate process independent of the general refractive status of the eye (myopia, hyperopia and/or astigmatism). While correction of this condition is currently an exciting field of study, corneal refractive procedures cannot correct this problem directly. Monovision is a technique to address this age-related visual challenge.

Integrated Care

Many patients are under the care of an Optometrist who is intimately familiar with their longstanding ocular history and the stability of their refractive error. In these cases, Dr. Auker can work intimately with your Optometrist to assess your eligibility, and to determine the best procedure and outcome for your individual case. This relationship will always be professional and ethical with the sole purpose of providing you with the very best care available anywhere. Post-operative care is delegated to another care provider only on your request and when it is to your benefit. Dr. Auker is personally available to all his post-operative patients on a planned or as-needed basis.

Potential Challenges

A detailed discussion of the risks associated with each refractive procedure is part of every patient evaluation and consultation. This is accomplished via digital, video and printed informational material provided, as well as through one-on-one consultation with Dr. Auker and his experienced staff.

Careful assessment preoperatively is by far the best method of avoiding the problems that can reduce the benefit and satisfaction one should experience following LASIK. Large pupils, dry eyes, and thin or misshapen corneas demand caution and carefully selected options to minimize the risk of a less-than-optimal outcome. Many options are available and refractive surgery is not for everyone.

We’re conveniently located in Pleasanton, California.

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Our Mission

“To deliver the highest standard of care possible while providing the best clinical judgment, surgical skills and quality outcomes available anywhere.”