What is photorefractive keratectomy?
Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) is a corneal modification procedure to reduce and/or correct nearsightedness (myopia). An excimer laser is used to make the modifications. It produces a uniform, concentrated beam of high energy ultraviolet light that can be precisely focused onto the cornea (the clear outside surface of the eye). This flattens the surface of the cornea and changes its focusing power. The procedure reduces nearsightedness by moving the focus of the image closer to the retina. What is nearsightedness? In an eye with 20/20 vision, the cornea helps to focus light rays on the retina (the back inside surface of the eye). In the nearsighted eye, light rays are focused in front of the retina, resulting in blurred distance vision. How is PRK performed? PRK is done as an outpatient procedure and generally only one eye is done at a time. Before PRK, patients get anesthetic eye drops. During the procedure, the excimer laser’s ultraviolet light energy is focused on the cornea. It
