The LASIK Flap

San Francisco, Bay Area & San Jose, California

The corneal flap is an important development in the LASIK surgery procedure. Before the flap, variant LASIK procedures entailed a longer recovery and other disadvantages for the patient.

Non-flap procedures remain an important alternative for those people who are not candidates for LASIK. The experienced eye surgeons at the Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley provide LASIK surgery to people in San Francisco, San Jose and the surrounding California areas. Our skilled ophthalmologists also provide LASIK alternatives and, during a consultation, can determine the procedure best-suited to your needs.

What is the LASIK Flap?

The first step in a LASIK procedure is the creation of a flap. Using a metal blade or a laser, the eye surgeon creates a circular flap on the surface of the eye. The flap is hinged along a portion of the circumference so it can be folded back to expose the deeper layer of the cornea.
Some of the advantages of the LASIK flap include:

• Faster recovery
• Less post-operative pain and discomfort
• Rapid vision results
• Lower rate of complications

Performed with a blade or a laser, the creation of the LASIK flap has developed into a safe, effective step in the procedure. With the advent of custom LASIK using Wavefront mapping technology, laser vision correction has progressed to become a precise and accurate procedure.

LASIK before the Corneal Flap

Before the LASIK flap, surgeons performed photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). Like LASIK, PRK reshapes the cornea with a laser, but a corneal flap is not created. Instead, PRK consists of what is called "advanced surface ablation," a technique in which the outer layer of cells is scraped away, revealing the deeper layer of the cornea that is reshaped with a laser.

PRK is associated with a longer recovery period because the outer layer of cells ("epithelium") must grow back. You may experience discomfort as the epithelium regenerates during the days following the procedure.

Conversely, by creating a corneal flap in LASIK, the outer layer of cells are preserved and placed back after the cornea is reshaped. In this way, the LASIK flap facilitates a rapid recovery. Many people experience improved vision only 24 hours after LASIK.

Even with the advantages gained by corneal flap creation, PRK and other LASIK variants remain viable options for many people, particularly those who are not candidates for LASIK. For example, people with thin corneas may benefit from a LASIK alternative if there is not adequate tissue to create a flap.

Find out if LASIK surgery is right for you. If you live in San Francisco or the surrounding California areas, please contact the experienced LASIK surgeons at the Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley to schedule a consultation.

1.800.725.0740