Medical Ophthalmology

Almost everyone today has heard about Lasik eye surgery, but it wasn’t long ago that it was viewed as a brand new and revolutionary innovation. Lasik is actually an acronym that stands for laser assisted in-situ keratomileusis. It was development thanks to several advances in ophthalmologic technology, the first of which was the microkeratome blade invented in by Spanish ophthalmologist Jose Barraquer in the 1950s.

The microkeratome is an instrument containing an ultra-fine oscillating blade that is used to cut a thin flap in the eye’s cornea. In the decades that followed the invention of the microkeratome advances in laser technology would develop that enabled the eventual creation of the Lasik procedure.

The Excimer Laser

The first successful, working laser was tested in 1960. Researchers afterwards began developing more precise and powerful lasers. In the 1970s the Excimer laser was invented and it became one of the most crucial innovations in the field of ophthalmology.

The thing that made the Excimer laser unique was that, unlike previous lasers, it did not burn through tissue in order to make incisions. Rather it delivered enough energy to the targeted area that it actually caused the molecular bonds holding the tissue together to disintegrate into the air. Thus it was able to make ultra-precise cuts without burning tissue and risking possible thermal damage to surrounding areas. This meant that eye surgeries could now be conducted in a safer and more precise manner.

In the 1980s, Dr. Ioannis Pallikaris pioneered the concept of using the microkeratome invented by Barraquer in the 50s in conjunction with the Excimer laser. The microkeratome was used to cut the initial corneal flap. Once the cornea was accessed adn analyzed through corneal topography, the Excimer laser was used to do the actual re-shaping. Dr. Pallikaris himself conducted the first Lasik procedure in 1989.

LASIK Surgery Today

Since 1989 laser technology has only become more complex and precise. New procedures have made even the long-used microkeratome blade obsolete. In procedures such as epi-Lasik and IntraLase, a laser blade is used instead of the metal one to cut the flap in the cornea. This results in more accurate incisions that cause less discomfort and pain.




By: Ryan Frank