Many people suffer from a variety of refractive errors including near-sightedness and long-sightedness as well as astigmatisms. With the LASIK procedure a laser is used to reshape the cornea of the eye which corrects these refractive errors.

In the LASIK treatment, a thin flap is cut in the surface of the cornea, which is then folded back at which point a programmed laser is used to sculpt the exposed area. This flap re-adheres when allowed to return to its natural state at the end of the operation.

Wavefront-Guided LASIK is a technological advancement which allows for greater individual accuracy in the programmed laser. A special device is used to gain ultra-accurate readings from your eye which in turn allows for improved quality of treatment. This form of treatment is highly recommended for those who have access to it.

Wavefront technology allows for the creation of a detailed map of your eye which allows all the tiny imperfections in the cornea that cause refractive errors to be addressed in minute accuracy. Wavefront provides patients with improved quality of vision compared to previous standard treatments.

Measurements are taken by a sensor which responds to a beam of light that is sent through your eye and focussed on the retina. To ensure great accuracy in taking these readings you are required to rest your chin on a piece of apparatus and fix your vision on a certain point of light.

Wavefront technology not only corrects the refractive errors already mentioned, but also corrects problems which cannot be addressed by the use of glasses or contact lenses. Whilst this is an excellent treatment that can give significantly improved vision, it is not a procedure for all problems. Your ophthalmologist will tell you what is right for you.

Read a step by step guide to wavefront lasik surgery procedure.

So, who qualifies for wavefront LASIK and who will benefit most from it?

First, there are certain conditions that may only be fixed using this type of laser treatment, for example improvement of vision in low light conditions. Wavefront mapping tests the eye for ‘aberrations’ which are visual errors of which there are standard and higher-order aberrations.

Standard aberrations can be treated with traditional LASIK surgery though high-order aberrations are only possible to be corrected with wavefront technology.

About 15% to 17% of all aberrations are of this higher-order and wavefront surgery will be especially beneficial and recommended to those who have a larger number of higher-order aberrations.

Your doctor will be able to let you know whether your treatment can be done using traditional or wavefront technology, or either.

In most cases you will be able to choose between traditional or wavefront LASIK, and wavefront could prove the better option for many reasons. Although the costs associated with wavefront LASIK are higher than with traditional LASIK, if you qualify what you will be getting is a life-time investment for your eyes.

The wavefront surgery requires much more technology which sometimes results in better outcomes for the patient and better quality of vision.

This is especially in night-time and dim environments, which is one reason why you may opt for wavefront as opposed to traditional LASIK surgery. There is also the greater overall chance of sustaining this improved vision for a longer period of time.

The important thing is to discuss with your doctor what the best option is for you.

Choosing wavefront or custom LASIK over traditional LASIK will not complicate your surgery or make it any more painful, in fact it will be as quick and as pain-free as traditional LASIK: the only difference will be the results in vision and the fact that the laser is guided by completely customized wavefront technology.

Wavefront LASIK is recommended for anyone who qualifies and is interested in benefitting from the highest quality of improved vision.

One thing you should know upfront is that wavefront LASIK, also known as custom lasik, is going to cost more than the traditional surgery. Prices of all types of LASIK vary from provider to provider, depending on a number of factors, but are generally charged at a certain cost per eye.

The price quoted will be for one eye, so you must double this if you intend to get both eyes corrected, even if this is at the same time.

There will be extra charges in place for certain technology, including wavefront. Quoted prices may seem to differ widely with one provider offering $499 and the other $2000. The truth is that, while some companies may legitimately offer a low price, in many cases this offer will not apply to you and your requirements where more extensive correction is needed.

In the case of wavefront LASIK you can expect the increase in cost from traditional LASIK to be around $1000 more. Some surgeons, however, will not increase their cost for using this custom technology and instead will charge a standard fee for all procedures (dependant on your individual needs).

If you are daunted by the costs then you needn’t be as most providers will offer you an easy payment plan to help you pay the cost of your treatment in small amounts each month.

Purchasing laser treatment is an important decision, and hopefully one that will only need to be made once. For this reason spending that little extra to achieve better results is often the best way. Your eye doctor will advise you on whether wavefront LASIK would be a good way to cure your vision problems.

So what will the extra cost of custom wavefront LASIK bring you in terms of results? In most cases there is a highly increased chance of achieving 20/20 vision or better with wavefront LASIK, as well as better quality of sight in low-light conditions.

There is also less risk that your quality of vision will decrease when opting for this type of surgery, so make your choice wisely. It could be well-worth the initial investment for the benefits you will reap from choosing this particular option.  Wavefront Lasik recovery is also something you may want to read more about.

Firstly the statistics state a great case for wavefront surgery: after wavefront LASIK, 90-94% of patients will enjoy 20/20 vision or better as opposed to 80% with traditional LASIK. But why is this the case?

The fact is that in traditional LASIK, measurements are based on general averages are used for reshaping the cornea whereas wavefront mapping consists in hundreds of measurements being taken across the surface of each individual eye.

Wavefront maps the eye by using a device known as an aberrometer to detect the overall refractive error of each eye. Light will be sent into the eye in a specific pattern, and any difference between the light going in and the light measured by the eye is considered an aberration.

These abberations, using wavefront technology, are able to be measured across hundreds of points on the eye enabling a completely individualised map of the eye’s surface to be created in each case.

The main difference between traditional LASIK and wavefront LASIK is the fact that these highly detailed and individualised mappings of the eye are what is used to guide the laser during reshaping of the cornea in surgery. Traditional LASIK offers no such accurate guide, which is why results are vastly improved when using wavefront LASIK surgery.

There are other benefits too, such as the fact that not only does wavefront improve how much you can see but it improves the quality of your vision. For example wavefront will be of huge benefit to those who may have poor night-time vision, recognising each point in the eye when there are abberations.

Unlike traditional LASIK surgery, wavefront accounts for how much as well as how well you can see by recognizing all types of aberration on the surface of the eye.

When you choose wavefront LASIK over traditional LASIK there is a greater chance that you will retain your corrected vision and reduced chance of night vision disturbances and glare. It can also treat those who have previously had the traditional surgery and have lost their best corrected vision.

Please ask your eye doctor whether wavefront LASIK could be the best treatment for you.  Read about Los Angeles Lasik.

After your eyes have been tested you will be informed whether wavefront LASIK is an option for you. If so, using this technology will leave you with a greater chance of attaining 20/20 vision or better.

If you choose to go through with the surgery your doctor will schedule you for a pre-op appointment in which they will go through the procedure with you, as well as any pre or post-operative guidelines that you must adhere to.

This may include you not wearing contact lenses and only using glasses in the time before the procedure. They will also test your eyes which will be similar to any normal eye exam. Before or on the day of the procedure you may be expected to make part of your payment and to make the rest after a certain period of time.

To prepare you for surgery the doctor will cover up one eye and the eye that they will work on first will be taped open. You should be given drops to numb the eye so that you will not feel the work being done. They will then use an ‘eye speculum’ which is an instrument to keep your eye open during the operation on the eye.

The surgery will consist in cutting into your eye to make a flap over the surface, which you shouldn’t feel and which will only last a few seconds. This flap is then lifted so that the laser can get to work, reshaping the surface of your eye.

Wavefront lasik surgery is extremely quick and your doctor will soon let the flap back down and move onto the other eye. The procedure for each eye will be the same and the whole process is extremely short from start to finish.

After surgery the doctor will make sure that your eyes do not dry out by giving you drops, as well as protective shields to wear over your eyes for a length of time.

You should rest and after a day or so your eyesight should be considerably improved and will keep improving over time until it reaches its optimal level. You must then keep using the drops and visit your doctor for a check up – and that’s really all there is to it.

If you haven’t yet, read an introduction to wavefront lasik surgery.

While this can be highly beneficial, it is not based on a completely individualized map of the patient’s eye (in the same way that glasses and contact lenses are shaped based on average measurements).

Wavefront lasik eye surgery, on the other hand, seeks to provide more accurate results by providing this individual map (or waveprint).

Wavefront technology was originally used in astronomy to monitor light entering telescopes, and was eventually adapted for laser eye correction. The first wavefront mapping of the eye was performed in 1994, and since then has provided an advancement of original lasik in many individual cases.

Also known as custom LASIK, wavefront LASIK involves a unique treatment from person-to-person by using three-dimensional measurements of the eye in order to be used as a guide for reshaping the surface of the cornea and improving vision.

Wavefronts are measured by devices known as aberrometers which detect the overall refractive power error of each eye. During this process, light is sent into the eye in specific patterns, where any difference between the light that is measured by the eye and the light being sent is considered an aberration. This mapping is then be used as an accurate guide for laser reshaping of the cornea.

In other words, the procedure is more exact–more customized to your unique individual eye.

This system of mapping is the main difference between traditional and wavefront lasik treatment. Studies have shown a larger percentage of patients achieving 20/20 vision after wavefront LASIK than the traditional eye surgery. Wavefront LASIK is 25 more times as accurate as traditional LASIK since the data is collected from hundreds of different points on the eye’s surface.

After this, the cornea reshaping is customized from these measurements to suit each individual. No two wavefront waveprints are the same and in this way each wavefront LASIK treatment will be catered to the individual 100%.

Wavefront LASIK can be extremely advantageous to some, yet to others it is unnecessary and will have no effect. This will all depend on the exact measurements of your eye, and your wavefront mapping will determine which treatment is best for you.

It has been used in the past to help those with nearsightedness, farsightedness and also astigmatism. It is also used for other refractive errors of the eye that are not possible to correct with glasses or contact lenses.

Read about wavefront lasik recovery and healing.