For Jeri Goldstein everything
was a blur. Without her contact lenses she couldn't distinguish
people, the scenes on television, the stars at night, and, generally,
the world at large. Then, in March 1998, the 49-year-old California
resident had eye surgery, and all that changed.
"After wearing
contact lenses for 35 years, you can't imagine the freedom I
felt," says Goldstein.
Goldstein underwent
refractive eye surgery, an elective procedure intended to correct
common eye disorders, known as refractive errors, such as myopia
(nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism
(distorted vision). Although there are several types of surgical
techniques being performed today to correct refractive errors,
laser refractive correction is fast becoming the most technologically
advanced method available, according to the American Academy
of Ophthalmology in San Francisco. Doctors say it allows for
an unparalleled degree of precision and predictability.
"Laser surgery
is the most exciting advancement in ophthalmology," says
James J. Salz, M.D., clinical professor of ophthalmology at the
University of Southern California in Los Angeles and the doctor
who performed Goldstein's surgery. But surprisingly, he says,
despite its sudden popularity, "only 20 Percent of ophthalmologists
in the United States today are trained in its operation."
The Food and Drug Administration
first approved the excimer laser in October 1995 for correcting
mild to moderate nearsightedness. With that approval, the agency
also restricted use of the laser to practitioners trained both
in laser refractive surgery and in the calibration and operation
of the laser. Currently, the excimer laser has been approved
for use in a procedure called photorefractive keratectomy (PRK),
and, as of November 1998, for a procedure called laser in situ
Keratomileusis (LASIK).
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