The LASIK Glossary
If you are considering LASIK laser eye surgery, you'll need to do some research and ask plenty of questions before making the final decision. You can also make your research process a lot easier by learning some of the "LASIK lingo" before you begin.
Here are some common terms related to vision, eye surgery, and LASIK in particular.
Accommodation - the ability of the eye to change its focus from distant objects to near objects.
Acuity - clearness, or sharpness of vision.
Astigmatism - a distortion of the image on the retina caused by irregularities in the cornea or lens.
Cornea - the clear, front part of the eye. The cornea is the first part of the eye that bends (or refracts) the light and provides most of the focusing power.
Dry Eye Syndrome - a common condition that occurs when the eyes do not produce enough tears to keep the eye moist and comfortable. Common symptoms of dry eye include pain, stinging, burning, scratchiness, and intermittent blurring of vision.
Excimer Laser - an ultraviolet laser used in refractive surgery to remove corneal tissue.
Farsightedness - the common term for hyperopia.
Ghost Image - a fainter second image of the object you are viewing.
Glare - scatter from bright light that decreases vision.
Halos -are rings around lights due to optical imperfections in or in front of the eye.
Haze - corneal clouding that causes the sensation of looking through smoke or fog.
Hyperopia - the inability to see near objects as clearly as distant objects, and the need for accommodation to see distant objects clearly.
In Situ -a Latin term meaning "in place" or not removed.
Iris - the colored ring of tissue suspended behind the cornea and immediately in front of the lens.
Keratectomy - the surgical removal of corneal tissue. Not to be confused with "keratotomy" (see below).
Keratotomy - a surgical incision (cut) of the cornea. Not to be confused with "keratectomy" (previous entry).
Keratitis - inflammation of the cornea.
Kerato - prefix indicating relationship to the cornea.
Keratomileusis - carving of the cornea to reshape it.
Laser - the acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. A laser is an instrument that produces a powerful beam of light that can vaporize tissue.
LASIK - the acronym for laser assisted in situ keratomileusis which refers to creating a flap in the cornea with a microkeratome and using a laser to reshape the underlying cornea.
Lens - a part of the eye that provides some focusing power. The lens is able to change shape allowing the eye to focus at different distances.
Monovision - the purposeful adjustment of one eye for near vision and the other eye fordistance vision.
Myopia - the inability to see distant objects as clearly as near objects.
Nearsightedness - the common term for myopia.
Ophthalmologist - a medical doctor specializing in the diagnosis and medical or surgical treatment of visual disorders and eye disease.
Optician - an expert in the art and science of making and fitting glasses and may also dispense contact lenses.
Optometrist - a primary eye care provider who diagnoses, manages, and treats disorders of the visual system and eye diseases.
Overcorrection - a complication of refractive surgery where the achieved amount of correction is more than desired.
PRK - the acronym for photorefractive keratectomy which is a procedure involving the removal of the surface layer of the cornea (epithelium) by gentle scraping and use of a computer-controlled excimer laser to reshape the stroma.
Pupil - a hole in the center of the iris that changes size in response to changes in lighting. It gets larger in dim lighting conditions and gets smaller in brighter lighting conditions.
Radial Keratotomy - commonly referred to as RK; a surgical procedure designed to correct myopia (nearsightedness) by flattening the cornea using radial cuts.
Refraction - a test to determine the refractive power of the eye; also, the bending of light as it passes from one medium into another.
Refractive Errors - imperfections in the focusing power of the eye, for example, hyperopia, myopia, and astigmatism.
Refractive Power - the ability of an object, such as the eye, to bend light as light passes through it.
Retina - a layer of fine sensory tissue that lines the inside wall of the eye. The retina acts like the film in a camera to capture images, transforms the images into electrical signals, and sends the signals to the brain.