An article in the October 11, 1999 issue of Time gives a great description of the setup of the human eye. “The human eye is surrounded by a tough layer called sclera. In the front of the eyeball the sclera gives way to the cornea. Light passes through the cornea to the pupil, the hole in the middle of the iris, or the colored part of your eye. Depending on how bright the incoming light is, the pupil grows wider or narrower. Light then passes through the lens, which lies directly behind the iris and changes shape as needed-curving or flatting- to help focus the image onto the retina, the light sensitive tissue at the back of the eyeball that converts the light into electrical signals. Then, the optic nerve sends these impulses to the brain’s optic centers, which create the picture in your mind.” (Gorman, 1999).
Reading this made makes me marvel at what a great instrument the human eye is. But this amazing organ can cause pretty big problems such as: myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, presbyopia and cataracts.
MYOPIA (Nearsightedness)- You can see objects that are near clearly but you have problems seeing objects that are far. (www.1-lasik-laser-eye-surgery.com/vision.html).
HYPEROPIA (Farsightedness)- You can see objects that are far clearly but you have problems seeing objects that are near. (www.1-lasik-laser-eye-surgery.com/vision.html).
CATARACTS- the lens in the person’s eye is cloudy or opaque not clear and transparent, which means light, is unable to pass through it and vision becomes blurred (www.lasikindia.com/cataract-mid.htm).
ASTIGMATISM- if you have this it doesn’t matter if you are looking at something near or far you will have a problem seeing the object. (www.1-lasik-laser-eye-surgery.com/vision.html).
PRESBYOPIA- this is something that happens to everyone (after age 40) because the lens behind your cornea that changes shape so you can focus loses it elasticity. So you start to have a hard time focusing on objects. (www.1-lasik-laser-eye-surgery.com/vision.html).
If you suffer from any of the above problems there are different options available other than glasses or contact lens. Other than RK the rest are done with lasers: RK, Excimer Laser Surgery, Monovision, Implantable Contact Lens Surgery and Cataract Surgery.
RK (Radial Keratotomy)- A doctor uses a diamond bladed instrument to make incision in the cornea. The incisions are made in a spoke-like pattern, which allows the eye to flatten so vision become clearer (www.1-lasik-laser-eye-surgery.com/rk.html).
