Exclusive to Optilase in Ireland, people who have to use corrective eyewear or reading lasses can now avail of Presbia, a procedure involving a specialised corneal implant using the Flexivue Microlens™.
Corneal implants and corneal inlays are tiny lenses or other refractive devices inserted into the cornea to correct vision problems.
They’re designed to compensate for near vision problems like Presbyopia; the aging of the eye that causes stiffening of your own natural crystalline lens, making it difficult to focus on objects close to the eye.
Unlike LASIK and other laser vision correction procedures, corneal implant procedures do not remove corneal tissue. Instead, a tiny pocket is made in the cornea using a femtosecond laser, and the Flexivue Microlens™ is slipped into it.
Corneal implant and inlay surgery also is reversible: the Flexivue Microlens™ can be removed at any time to be exchanged or updated as your vision changes with age.
The Flexivue Microlens is gently positioned in the central zone of the cornea, directly in front of the pupil, in a procedure that lasts about 10 minutes.
Presbia surgery is performed on an outpatient basis and takes only a few minutes. It requires only topical anaesthesia and there is no discomfort. If you wish, your eye doctor can provide a mild sedative prior to the procedure to relax you.
The steps involved in corneal implant surgery are:
Numbing eye drops are applied to the eye undergoing the procedure.
A small pocket is created in the cornea, using a femtosecond laser.
The corneal implant is inserted into the cornea and is positioned directly in front of the pupil to improve vision.
The corneal wound from corneal implant surgery typically self-seals and heals within a matter of days with no need for stitches.
Current corneal inlay procedures for presbyopia treatment usually are performed on one eye only, producing a modified monovision effect. This means that the eye receiving the corneal implant, the non-dominant eye, experiences improved near vision. This usually greatly reduces or completely eliminates the need for reading glasses and gives you much clearer focus on near objects.
To see if you could be a candidate for Presbia and the Flexivue Microlens™, call Optilase at +353 1 223 8821