Making a decision to have LASIK is a life-changing decision for people who have depended on glasses or contact lenses to see clearly. For over 25 years, people have been getting LASIK surgery to correct their nearsightedness, farsightedness, and/or astigmatism. Originally, LASIK surgeons used a mechanical blade called a microkeratome to create the flap on the surface of the cornea, the first step of the procedure. Then around 1988, the FDA approved the femtosecond laser technology for creating the flap making the procedure even safer and more precise than ever before.
Throughout the history of LASIK, ophthalmologist Jonathan M. Frantz, MD, FACS, medical director of Frantz EyeCare, has been a leader of LASIK technology in Southwest Florida, consistently offering his patients the latest advancements in surgical technologies.Dr. Frantz has taken LASIK technology to the next level with the addition of the area’s first WaveLight Refractive Suite, which includes the WaveLight EX500 Excimer Laser, which sculpts the cornea and the WaveLight FS200 Femtosecond Laser, which creates the corneal flap. The WaveLight Refractive Suite is fastest refractive surgery platform available in the United States.
“When I brought LASIK surgeon Dr. Jeffrey Robin to our practice in June of this year, he came to us with an excellent background, having performed over 65,000 laser vision correction procedures which places him among the top LASIK surgeons in the country,” said Dr. Frantz. “Dr. Robin and I knew we wanted to replace our current laser vision correction lasers with new technology that would provide our patients with the most advanced procedure possible. We wanted technology that would precisely adapt to the unique curvature of each patient’s individual eye,” said Dr. Frantz.
The WaveLight Refractive Suite technology met all their requirements. “This technology is a truly integrated system that gives me the ability to create a “map” of my patient’s eye to capture its unique features, a major advantage over earlier LASIK procedures,” said Dr. Robin. “It enables me to customize each procedure for exceptional patient outcomes that can result in the crispest, clearest vision for my patients,” he added.
If you’re a contact lens wearer and have been considering LASIK surgery, some new statistics that have just been released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may help convince you to get the surgery. According to the CDC, Americans make nearly one million doctors appointments and emergency room visits a year for eye infections – most of them due to the improper use and care of contact lenses. “If you wear contacts, you know how easy it is to take short cuts, sleep in your contacts too often, or not replace your contact case often enough,” said Dr. Robin. People who wear contact lenses over night are more than 20 times more likely to get Keratitis, an eye infection of the cornea that causes infection, pain, inflammation, scarring of the cornea and can even lead to blindness. “Having LASIK surgery will give you that freedom from your contacts and greatly reduce your chances of infection,” added Dr. Robin. “Let’s face it, life is just more convenient without the hassle of glasses or contact lenses,” he said.
To find out more about Southwest Florida’s most advanced WaveLight technology and get answers to your questions about LASIK, schedule your consultation with Dr. Jeffrey Robin or call 239-791-2020.
Now through the end of December, Frantz EyeCare is offering a $1,000 discount on WaveLight LASIK.
