LASIK Vision Correction Surgery: Right For You? (NAPSA)—A growing number of people are electing to have laser vision correction, commonly known as LASIK, in hopes of eliminating the need for glasses or contact lenses. However, before you make an appointment for such a procedure, there are three key factors to consider: 1. Are you a good candidate for the procedure? To begin the process of determining whether you are a good candidate for LASIK, you should consult with an eye care professional. Certain people are considered poor candidates: Anyone under age 18, women who are pregnant or nursing, and people with diabetes, herpes, AIDS, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and other diseases. It’s importantto realize that there are risks with LASIK surgery, as with any eye surgery, and that, dependent on the correction needed, the procedure may improve your vision but not com- pletely eliminate your need for glasses or contacts. In addition, some conditions, such as presbyopia (an inability to focus from far to near, usually occurring after age 45), cannot be corrected with LASIK. 2. What kind of experience does your surgeon have? Don’t be afraid to ask. Find out how long the physician has been performing laser vision correction surgeries, or how many procedures he/she has done. Also, look into how successful these procedures have been, and how many of the surgeon’s cases have required re-treatment or follow-up surgery. It is always advisable to ask for a surgical referral from your regular eye doctor. LADARWave CuslamComeas Wovelroet System —"s ‘aa. Laser correction surgery is increasingly common, butit’s to the patient’s benefit to do research on both the doctor and the procedure. 3. Make sure your doctor is using state-of-the-art equipment. New LASIKtechnology, based on measuring your eye’s power with a technique called wavefront sensing, is changing how eye surgeons can address your visual problems. A new procedurecalled CustomCornea employs this new wavefront technology as part of the LADARVision system. This new system customizes the proce- dure to meet an individual’s needs, and it is used to address both lower-order (nearsighted- ness, farsightedness, astigmatism) and higher-order aberrations. This is the only LASIK system available today that can address both lower- and higher-order aberrations. Experts in ophthalmology believe that higher-order aberrations may be linked to problems like glare and halos that can cause night vision problems, and are commonly associated with conventional LASIK sideeffects. For more information about selecting a LASIK physician, visit www.ladarvision.com.
