LASIK Eye Surgery - Raleigh, Cary, Durham » intralase

You Can Get a Cheaper LASIK, but You Can’t Get a Better LASIK than iLASIK

drdornic — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:11:01 +0000

Over the years, the LASIK procedure has evolved to become better and safer. The LASIK procedure still consists of two main steps: 1. creating a flap and 2. reshaping the cornea under the flap. The ultimate in safety and results in LASIK is iLASIK which is the culmination of improvements in both steps.

In the first step, flap creation, a metal blade is replaced with a laser. In the second step, a technology termed “wavefront-guided” treatment is used to insure the final shape is free of aberrations in order to achieve the best quality of vision. The resulting advance in LASIK technology is termed “iLASIK”. Because new instruments and user fees set by the laser manufacturers are added to this premium LASIK procedure, patients can expect to pay more for iLASIK than conventional LASIK.

Recently other technology has been developed to reduce the cost and still achieve some of the advantages of iLASIK. Z-LASIK offers the advantage of a more precise flap thickness over the bladed microkeratome but it does not match the safety or visual results of iLASIK.

Patients may want to believe that the newer, cheaper Z-LASIK technology is just as good as iLASIK, but just as with many other things in life, “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t”. The iLASIK procedure has proven itself to be the best technology available for LASIK vision correction. After extensive investigation, the U.S. military has chosen iLASIK exclusively for performing vision correction on our troops because of it’s stellar history.

Medical Director, Dean Dornic, MD is the first Raleigh area ophthalmologist to perform iLASIK and has extensive experience in all-laser LASIK procedures. If you believe, as we do, that the few extra dollars to receive a better LASIK procedure is worth it, why not come in for an evaluation?

IntraLase Gives You a “Do-Over”

drdornic — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 02:31:29 +0000

Wouldn’t it be great if everytime things didn’t go exactly right you got a “do-over”. How much higher would your grade point average be if you had an opportunity to take that test over that you didn’t study properly for? How much better would your golf score be if you got to take over that shanked drive or missed putt? Well IntraLase is like that because your surgeon gets a chance for a “do-over”.
With Z-LASIK once the flap is cut, well, it’s cut. So if the equipment malfunctions while the flap is being created then you could be left with half a flap or an irregular flap. The procedure may have to be abandoned. Intralase is different. IntraLase works by creating a bubble layer under the surface of the cornea. This works like creating perforations in a strip of stamps. The flap is not complete until the surgeon peforms the “sidecut” and lifts the flap. So in the case of IntraLase, if a malfunction occurs while the flap is being created, the procedure can be halted, the bubbles can be allowed to dissipate and the procedure resumed; the do-over.
Dr. Dornic has performed both IntraLase and Z-LASIK and his findings confirm the published data on all-laser LASIK. IntraLase is safer. No wonder the US military and most major university eye centers choose IntraLase over Z-LASIK. Intralase is the safest method to perform LASIK. If you are in the Raleigh – Durham area and are thinking about LASIK, you owe it to yourself to investigate all the advantages that the IntraLase method offers. Why not come in for a free consultation with Dr. Dornic and find out for yourself?

Less Risk of Flap Displacement with IntraLase

drdornic — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 22:38:10 +0000

One potential risk of the LASIK procedure is a flap complication. You know that the IntraLase procedure is the safest way to create the flap but did you know that the safety benefits extend even after the LASIK procedure has been completed?
Here’s why. One potential complication is displacement or “slippage” of the flap, especially early on before the flap has healed. When a flap is created with a microkeratome (blade) or Ziemer laser (Z-LASIK), the flap cut is a single plane. The IntraLase flap, however, is meniscus shaped so it fits snuggly like a manhole. The IntraLase flap is better, therefore, at being able to tolerate trauma. This is one reason why the military performs all their LASIK using the IntraLase method.
The IntraLase method of LASIK has a lowest complication rate at the time of the procedure. It also has the lowest complication rate after the procedure has been completed.

Meaningless and Misleading Claims

drdornic — Sat, 22 May 2010 22:31:59 +0000

I read with alarm the totally contrived and misleading claims by some providers of LASIK in North Carolina. One provider claims to have “the best laser in it’s class”? What exactly does that mean?
Also, there are the suggestions that some LASIK surgeons are using the same technology as the US Military. The only All-Laser LASIK procedure currently being performed by the military utilizes the IntraLase laser. Any other laser is simply not as safe or customizable.

LASIK for Military Pilots

drdornic — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 01:09:40 +0000

Within the Department of Defense a total of 25 warfighter refractive surgery centers (Army: 12, Navy: 7, Air Force: 6) completed more than 312,000 refractive surgery procedures over the past 10 years. Laser vision correction has been allowed for all aspects of military service, including aviation, special operations, and support personnel. It is also approved for NASA astronauts.
The Navy is currently undertaking a study on US Naval aviators at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego and Portsmouth. To date, more than 200 aviators are in the study. Refractive errors up to -7.50 diopters are represented and the results have been outstanding. All procedures were performed with IntraLase and 90% were wavefront-guided; the exact same technology featured at the Laser Eye Center of Carolina for our LASIK patients.
All aviators were able to return to flight status within two weeks after myopic LASIK and within four weeks after hyperopic LASIK. Patient satisfaction was excellent three months after LASIK. One hundred percent were able to achieve 20/20 levels of vision. There were no complaints of significant glare, halos, haze or sharpness of vision. Ninety-eight percent felt that LASIK helped their effectiveness as a naval aviator and ninety-nine percent indicated that they would definitely recommend LASIK to their fellow aviators.
The US armed forces have embraced LASIK as a way to make troops “combat ready”. Over the years vision correction technology has evolved such that LASIK has proven to be a safe and effective procedure. But not all LASIK is equivalent. In order to achieve the phenomenal success illustrated in this latest study, IntraLase and wavefont-guided (Custom-Vue) LASIK is necessary. This premium LASIK comes at an increased cost and the wary consumer should not be lulled into the false notion that inferior, “imposter All-Laser” LASIK can achieve this level of success. Time and time again, large scale, commercially unbiased studies such as those conducted by the US armed forces have demonstrated the superiority of genuine iLASIK over other LASIK technologies.
Maybe you don’t need the type of vision needed to land a plane on an aircraft carrier, but couldn’t you benefit from the superior vision offered by genuine iLASIK in your activities of daily living? Raleigh area LASIK candidates can avail themselves of this “fighter pilot” grade vision at the Laser Eye Center of Carolina. Of course, all medical procedures carry with them some risks and to make sure you are a good candidate for iLASIK you are invited to come in for a free consultation with Dr. Dornic. Dr. Dornic will describe all your options and taylor a treatment plan that is personalized just for you.

Understanding IntraLase

drdornic — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:04:39 +0000

The first step of the LASIK procedure is the creation of a corneal flap. The purpose of the flap is to serve as a protective “lid” underwhich the vision correcting corneal reshaping is accomplished.
A laser has always been used to perform the reshaping but until IntraLase, the flap was created with instruments that contained a blade. The IntraLase Method is a 100% blade-free approach to creating your corneal flap. With the IntraLase Method, a blade never touches your eye.

How does the IntraLase Method work?
Tiny pulses of laser light pass harmlessly through the outer portion of your cornea and form a uniform layer of microscopic bubbles just beneath the surface of your eye. Just prior to LASIK surgery, the doctor can lift the corneal flap by gently and easily separating the tissue where these bubbles have formed.
While LASIK complications are rare, when they do occur they are primarily related to the creation of the flap. The IntraLase Method virtually eliminates the most severe complications associated with LASIK.

IntraLase is a blade-free or all-laser procedure but the educated consumer needs to beware. Not all LASIK centers touting All-laser LASIK are offering IntraLase. Some may be offering a less refined procedure that lacks some of the safeguards of IntraLase.
To date, the IntraLase Method has been used in hundreds of thousands of LASIK procedures around the world.
The creation of the flap itself takes only about 15-20 seconds per eye after the application of numbing eyedrops. Including preparation time, the LASIK procedure takes about 10 minutes total.
The IntraLase Method is quickly becoming the preferred method among doctors, patients and the US military to create a corneal flap.
Dr. Dornic has been performing IntraLase for the past several years and is the first Raleigh area ophthalmologist to perform IntraLase.

LASIK Eye Surgery for Emergency Workers

drdornic — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 14:41:50 +0000

Concerned about being able to see, has had an increase in emergency personnel having the lasik surgery procedure done. Usually they will choose the Lasik with IntraLase Method.
While LASIK has always been a safe and effective procedure, the IntraLase Method offers patients the benefits of LASIK without the blade. With its enhanced safety profile and superior visual outcomes, the IntraLase Method has been the procedure of choice for the US military and is quickly becoming the procedure of choice for policemen, firemen, EMTs and other rescue personnel.
Dr. Dean Dornic of the Laser Eye Center of Carolina has noticed an uptick in emergency personnel from the Raleigh Durham area seeking LASIK vision correction surgery.
“Glasses and/or contact lenses may not be practical for emergency personnel.” said Dornic. “It’s also common for a contact lens wearer to seek LASIK before shipping out overseas for relief efforts such as is currently going on in Haiti where hygiene may be an issue.”
Being able to see without worrying about losing glasses or discomfort from contact lenses allows many emergency workers to perform their jobs safely and more efficiently.

iLASIK vs zLASIK: Which is Better?

drdornic — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 19:47:55 +0000

The first all-laser LASIK procedure made use of the IntraLase laser to make the flap rather than a blade. When the IntraLase laser is combined with AMO VISX’s proprietary CustomVue wavefront-guided treatment, the resulting procedure is termed “iLASIK”. The IntraLase laser has gone through several upgrades since it was first developed to improve it’s safety and precision. Because the IntraLase flaps can be made to fit like a “manhole” they tend to be more secure than those cut by a blade. Also, if something interrupts the creation of the flap, treatment can be restarted without any ill consequences. Since the introduction of IntraLase, Ziemer, a Swiss company, has introduced a laser to make LASIK flaps. Dr. Dornic has used both of these lasers to perform LASIK. The Ziemer laser is less expensive but it is not as well refined as the IntraLase laser. While the IntraLase laser can make flaps of varied thicknesses and architecture, the Ziemer laser can only make flaps of 3 different thicknesses and 3 diameters. The Ziemer can also only make flaps that are cut in much the same shape as a blade. They are therefore not as secure as an IntraLase flap. Another limitation of the Ziemer laser flap is that unlike the IntraLase laser, your surgeon cannot see the flap being made. Therefore, the surgeon cannot intercede to correct a problem such as misalignment or loss of suction occurring during the creation of the flap. What this means to the patient is that iLASIK is safer (more customizable flaps, lower risk of small, misshapen, decentered or slipped flaps) and the overall results are better with iLASIK than with zLASIK. If you want the safest, most precise LASIK, choose iLASIK.

There is a Difference Between LASIK Technologies

drdornic — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 17:21:16 +0000

Patients are often confused about the different technologies available. Information available on the web and by LASIK providers can be tainted by commercial bias. The US military is in the unique position to evaluate the different LASIK technologies that are commercially available and their flight surgeons are completely free of monetary incentives. Military flight surgeons are salaried and in choosing LASIK platforms, price is no object. See why NASA and the military chose IntraLase LASIK with CustomVue as their preferred technology: the exact same technology employed by Laser Eye Center of Carolina. http://www.amo-ilasik.com/500-video-center.aspx