Myopia (nearsightedness) is poor distance vision. This is usually a congenital disease. To improve vision, a person has to wear glasses or lenses all his life. But there is another option: laser vision correction or another operation that will achieve one hundred percent vision. A short procedure will permanently relieve you of the need to wear glasses. Doctors in Germany provide safe treatment with minimal trauma, without pain and hospitalization, with a quick recovery of vision.
Content
- Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK)
- Laser keratomileusis (LASIK)
- Phakic lens implantation
- Keratoplasty
In most cases, doctors use LASIK surgery. It restores vision completely and permanently, in just a few minutes, without pain and significant postoperative discomfort. If this operation is contraindicated, doctors have other operations in their arsenal: PRK, phakic lens implantation, keratoplasty.
You can go to the University Hospital Rechts der Isar Munich, the Charite University Hospital Berlin, the University Hospital Frankfurt am Main.
To go to Germany for treatment without unnecessary organizational worries, it is enough to book a medical program through the Booking Health service. We will fully organize your trip.
Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK)
PRK is historically the first method of laser vision correction. For the first time in the world, this operation was performed by German ophthalmologists in Berlin, in 1985. It became widespread and became the standard treatment for myopia, but was subsequently superseded by laser keratomileusis. PRK is rarely performed today.
The essence of the method: the shape of the cornea is corrected with a laser. The intervention is performed outside the cornea of the eye. The operation gradually lost popularity due to disadvantages: discomfort in the eyes in the first 3-4 days after the intervention; a high risk of corneal clouding, and a long (up to 1 month) achievement of the final optical outcome.
Therefore, PRK is performed only in cases where laser keratomileusis is contraindicated. The specialists in Germany use modified, more sparing, and safer options for PRK surgery: preliminary corneal debridement with an expert laser, cold ablation with a wide beam laser. To prevent corneal clouding, drugs with a cytostatic effect are used.
Laser keratomileusis (LASIK)
This is the most common vision correction surgery in the world. Doctors dissect the corneal flap, reshape the cornea, and then put the flap back. There is no significant effect on the surface layers of the cornea, so postoperative discomfort in the eyes is minimal. A person sees well the next day, and the final results are achieved in about a week.
The intervention takes a few minutes. It is performed under eye drop anesthesia, without hospitalization.
Modern clinics use various LASIK modifications. The most widespread is all-laser LASIK, in which, instead of a microkeratome (mechanical instrument), a femtolaser (femtosecond laser) is used to form a corneal flap.
Phakic lens implantation
Phakic intraocular lenses are a treatment option for patients with a high degree of myopia and astigmatism, as well as in the presence of contraindications for laser vision correction.
The treatment method is essentially similar to vision correction with contact lenses. Only in this case, the lenses are placed directly into the patient's eye, in the anterior or posterior chamber. This intervention is reversible. If necessary, the lenses can be removed or replaced.
The intervention is minimally traumatic: it is performed through a 1.6 mm incision, which is self-sealing and does not require suturing. The operation is performed in 10-15 minutes, without hospitalization, under eye drops anesthesia. In Germany, new types of lenses are being implanted that provide perfect vision and protect the eyes from ultraviolet radiation.
Keratoplasty
In severe cases of myopia that cannot be corrected by laser vision correction, doctors resort to keratoplasty. This is a corneal transplant from a donor.
The entire cornea does not need to be transplanted. Doctors perform interlayer or interlamellar keratoplasty: a fragment of the donor's cornea is transplanted between the layers of the patient's cornea. The technique allows for correcting myopia from 8.5 to 17.0 diopters, and it is also possible to correct simple, complex myopic, and mixed astigmatism up to 9.5 diopters. There are no deep incisions on the cornea, and in case of vision deterioration, the implant can be replaced without consequences for the cornea.
A sparing version of the operation is tunnel keratoplasty. This involves the transplantation of implants into interlayer tunnels on the periphery of the cornea, followed by the application of laxative incisions. The refractive effect reaches 14.5 diopters.
Another less traumatic treatment option is fragmentary annular keratoplasty. It allows achieving the same refractive effect: up to 14.5 diopters.
The operation provides good long-term outcomes. For example, according to H.K. Soon et al., engraftment of the donor graft was achieved in 97.4% of cases, and the majority of patients maintained a good result of treatment during 19 years of follow-up.
To undergo myopia treatment in Germany, please use the Booking Health service. The website presents information on how much is the price of the operation. Compare the cost of diagnostics and nearsightedness treatment in Germany in different hospitals to book a medical care program at favorable prices. Booking Health specialists will help you choose the best ophthalmological clinics in Germany and organize your trip.
Authors:
The article was edited by medical experts, board certified doctors Dr. Nadezhda Ivanisova and Dr. Sergey Pashchenko. For the treatment of the conditions referred to in the article, you must consult a doctor; the information in the article is not intended for self-medication!
Sources:
Ophthalmology Times
American Academy of Ophthalmology
Medscape
