Lenticule Extraction

When we think of robotic eye surgery, we may mistakenly picture futuristic machines taking over while human ophthalmologists are left out.

Minimally invasive lenticule extraction with the new Schwind ATOS femtosecond laser leads to highly predictable refractive outcomes, good optical quality and slight overestimation of the amount of tissue removed.

NEW YORK — George O. Waring IV, MD, discusses the emerging innovations and technologies in the refractive space in this presentation from OSN New York 2021.

Patients who underwent myopic astigmatism correction with the SmartSight lenticule extraction procedure experienced good visual and refractive outcomes at 12 months, according to a study.

The lenticules extracted during SMILE procedures can be potentially reused in many ways. They are integer, neatly cut discs from young, healthy corneas suitable for biomedical research, tissue repair and tissue-addition procedures.

SMILE surgery is becoming more and more popular and successful, and is now a driver in our high-volume clinic.

Small incision lenticule extraction has been used in more than 3.5 million refractive surgery procedures globally, primarily for the treatment of myopia and astigmatism.

Even though small incision lenticule extraction is deemed a safe, effective and reliable procedure in patients older than 40 years, outcomes may not be as good as in the younger population, according to a study.

LASIK, PRK and SMILE can all provide positive long-term vision results, but advancements in corneal and lens-based refractive surgery are enabling the optimization of vision for an even wider group of patients.