PRK Eye Surgery Video and Procedure Description
The above video shows a PRK procedure. Unlike LASIK or IntraLASIK, no flap is made with the PRK procedure. Instead, a very thin surface layer is brushed off the cornea, and the laser treatment is delivered directly on the surface of the eye. Afterwards, a contact lens is placed as a bandage over the eye. Over the course of approximately 3 to 5 days, the surface of the eye will heal underneath the contact lens and then the lens can be removed. At this point, the vision is typically "good enough to get by", but not real clear. Further clarity will develop gradually over a period of weeks.
Because the flapless PRK procedure is slower to heal, most patients ultimately opt for faster healing LASIK or IntraLASIK. However, there are a variety of reasons that a good number of patients still have PRK. For some patients, the cornea is not thick enough to make a flap. For others, such as those participating in boxing or martial arts, concerns over future eye trauma make flap procedures and advisable. And finally, some patients simply weigh the pros and cons of flap versus flapless and decide to take the longer healing PRK route out of personal preference.
It is important to note that the PRK procedure is defined by its flapless nature. The term PRK does not inherently specify whether the treatment coming out of the laser is conventional or custom. Therefore, to describe the procedure in more detail, the terms "conventional PRK" and "custom PRK" are often used.
Editor's Note: You may run across an occasional surgeon who calls his or her version of PRK either LASEK or Epi-LASIK. Do not be confused. For practical purposes, LASEK and Epi-LASIK are the same thing as PRK. These names are an attempt to rename PRK in a "LASIK-like-term", as the general public is more familiar with LASIK than PRK.