Did you know? 10 interesting facts about laser eye surgery

Laser eye surgery is a fascinating branch of medicine. Thanks to continuous technological advancements and increasingly powerful and enhanced lasers, treating short-sightedness is easier, safer and more convenient than ever. Even though we are all aware of the almighty powers of modern technology, there are still several aspects of laser eye surgery that continue to surprise people and may even seem utopian to some. What are they? Below, you’ll find a list of the 10 most interesting facts about laser eye surgery!
 

1. Laser eye surgery is the safest and most popular form of elective surgery in the world - more than 30 million people choose this option to improve their vision each year.

 

2. The Flow 2.0 laser procedure takes almost no time at all. Depending on the degree of short-sightedness, the laser can treat one eye in an average of 15 seconds. This means that it only takes 30 seconds to treat both eyes!

 

3. The Flow 2.0 laser procedure is very gentle to the eye. For instance, to correct near-sightedness of -6 dioptres, the laser will polish the corneal surface, reducing its thickness by roughly the equivalent of a single sheet of A4 paper.

 

4. It is widely believed that laser beams are hot and burn the eye during the procedure. In reality, the laser beams used in eye surgery are cold!

 

5. Compared to the use of glasses and contact lenses, laser eye surgery is a much more sustainable option. Did you know that approximately 150 million people around the globe wear contact lenses, resulting in an estimated 132 million kilograms of waste per year? Even more concerning is that approximately 20% of people who wear contact lenses admit to disposing of their used contact lenses by flushing them down the toilet. Such actions further contribute to the already large amounts of microplastics in the ocean, resulting in microplastic ingestion by fish and thereby also humans. Please always dispose of your contact lenses by throwing them in the rubbish bin!

 

6. During the Flow 2.0 laser procedure, the patient needs to follow the green light of the laser. What happens if you don’t look into the green laser? The short answer is: nothing! The laser tracks the movement of the eye 1,050 times per second and is, therefore, much faster in its movement than humans are, responding to any deviation within milliseconds.

 

7. The lowest degree of short-sightedness that has been treated with Flow 2.0 laser eye surgery is -0.5 dioptres. On the other end of the spectrum, Flow 2.0 procedure can be used to correct short-sightedness of up to -9 dioptres. Even if you have mild short-sightedness that negatively impacts your quality of life, laser eye surgery is still a viable option!

 

8. Did you know that laser eye surgery is a more affordable option in the long run compared to glasses or contact lenses? For example, if a 25-year-old person spends €20 each month on contact lenses and €200 every three years on glasses, by the time they are 60, they will have spent more than €10,000 on vision aids. Not to mention, some people buy new glasses every year and also invest in prescription sunglasses. Considering this, laser eye surgery is a cost-effective solution for many years to come.

 

9. Maintaining proper hygiene and adhering to the recommended wearing time for contact lenses is crucial. Did you know that wearing contact lenses daily increases the risk of vision-threatening eye infection fourfold, compared to having laser eye surgery? If you wear contact lenses for longer than the recommended time or forget to take them out before bed, the risk of vision-threatening eye infection is a whopping 20 times higher!

 

10. During the early years of laser eye surgery, about 30% of cases required repeat surgery. Thanks to advancements in technology and stricter selection criteria of patients, this figure has fallen over the years. Only 1–2% of the patients of KSA Vision Clinic who have undergone Flow 2.0 laser eye surgery require repeat surgery.