October 13, 2008

How Lasik Came to Be

Some people believe that the use of Lasik procedures has only occurred in very recent times. To most people Lasik and its associated technology are still novel concepts. However, Lasik’s success is the result of improvements made on prior procedures.
Vision correction surgeries can be traced back over fifty years to when some of the first procedures were carried out. In 1948, Dr. Jose Barraquer developed a technique we would describe as barbaric and unethical by today’s health care standards. Dr. Barraquer, who practiced in Bogota, Columbia, would remove and then freeze more than 50% of the patient0s cornea. A lathe would then be used to carefully sculpt the surface of the cornea to increase the quality of vision. The cornea was then sewn back in place once it was redesigned.
The outcomes of this technique, which was known as MKM, or freeze myopic keratomileusis, were extremely variable and thus clinically unreliable. It could also be a very complicated and intricate surgery to perform. The technique seems barbaric, but Lasik’s history is dependent upon the knowledge gained from those who came before. Today’s Lasik can thank MKM’s use of the basic version of microkeratome for advances in the industry.
Helping the development of […]

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