Why is prk less popular than lasik?Drew
All I ever hear about is Lasik. Only after doing some research did I come across PRK which actually seems less risky, faster and better (based on what I read).So by is Lasik so popular? Whats the advantage of Lasik over PRK?
Jamila
Lasik is like a race car. PRK is like a bicycle. The race car gets you there faster and it's more exciting. The bicyle gets you to the same place but it takes a lot longer and is less exciting because you don't get the same WOW factor when you sit up from the operating table. It can take weeks for PRK to give you it's maximum clarity. Also, there is a greater degree of post op discomfort with PRK.So, it's more popular because patients want the results NOW with as little discomfort as possible.
Jannet
PRK is certainly not faster than LASIK.LASIK gives you immediate visual recovery. The period of discomfort is over within a couple of hours of the procedure. Patients most often are 20/20 or better within one day, which is not the case with PRK.After PRK, patients have severe pain for one day. They need to see an eye doctor regularly for the first 3-4 post operative days. They also have a small hyperopic overshoot, and vision recovers only gradually. Typically, one day uncorrected vision after LASIK is acheived only at one month or so after PRK.When the refractive errors are high, LASIK sometimes scores over PRK. Patients with high refractive error, have a higher chance of corneal haze, and regression of the corrected refractive error with PRK than with LASIK. In small errors, the 3 month results of both LASIK and PRK are the same.All the above is why LASIK is more popular than PRK. However, there are some circumstances in which most eye surgeons would prefer to do PRK-when the patient has a thin cornea, or an epithelial disorder for example.
Florene
It's because LASIK is much more heavily advertised so most people know about it. I admit that I had never heard of PRK until I decided to do some research on vision correction procedures.
|
|
|
|
