Focus on care for your eyes
IT’S time to see things clearly. Our eyes are vitally important to our wellbeing and our quality of life and yet so many of us look at them as if they’ll always work. How many of us have eye check-ups when we’re advised to? It’s something we put off, perhaps fearful of what we might discover, or maybe it’s simply not wanting to buy a new pair of glasses.
Yet if we do nothing, vision problems that can compromise our everyday life in the future may go undetected.
However, when it comes to taking action the future is bright, scientific developments bringing corrective surgery as an alternative to glasses and contact lenses that is simple and swift.
Optegra Eye Health Care has the answer at its seven UK eye hospitals, combining state-of-the-art technology with consultant-led patient care.
The very latest procedure is ReLEx SMILE laser eye surgery. SMILE (small incision lenticule extraction) is a minimally invasive, bladeless keyhole laser surgery, a great alternative to traditional LASEK and LASIK treatments.
These generally don’t suit patients with dry eyes but if you have mild to moderate dry eyes, SMILE treatment can be ideal. You can also benefit from SMILE if you have an intolerance to contact lenses and/or a thinner than average cornea. It is also suitable for patients with or without astigmatism.
A closer look
During SMILE surgery, a high-tech Carl Zeiss VisuMax laser places a series of pulses in the centre of the cornea with extraordinary 3D accuracy. These pulses form bubbles that are less than SEE THE LIGHT: Simple procedures can help improve your sight if you remember to get regular check-ups 1/100th the width of a human hair and outline the tissue that needs to be removed to change the shape of the cornea. The laser then creates a tiny connecting tunnel through which the surgeon draws out tissue.
With SMILE, no flap is created, so the eye is more comfortable postoperatively than following other laser eye surgery. There’s also less risk of developing dry eyes than with conventional surgery and no discomfort because numbing drops are used.
The procedure takes less than 15 minutes, and vision is typically 80 per cent better within a few hours. After a few days, vision is excellent, reaching 100 per cent within a few weeks according to a study on more than 1,000
Aftercare
patients in the UK, Germany, France and Denmark.
Optegra provides comprehensive aftercare, with an appointment the day after surgery and follow-up checks for up to a year.
Optegra’s Queen Anne Street Hospital near London’s Harley Street is one of the few places in the UK to offer SMILE treatment.
Optegra hospitals offer NHS-trained surgeons and specialist optometrists and healthcare technicians.
In addition to laser eye surgery, Optegra offers lens replacement and treatment for conditions such as cataracts, Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD), floaters, retinal tears and glaucoma. INFORMATION: 0800 804 4198/optegra.com