Not many people have much knowledge of the principles behind Lasik eye correction surgery. The only thing that most people know is that Lasik removes the need for you to wear glasses or contacts, even though the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has an entire web site devoted to Lasik.

But is that surprising? I don’t think so. After all, how many people would really understand this:

LASIK stands for Laser-Assisted In Situ Keratomileusis and is a procedure that permanently changes the shape of the cornea, the clear covering of the front of the eye, using an excimer laser. A knife, called a microkeratome, is used to cut a flap in the cornea. A hinge is left at one end of this flap. The flap is folded back revealing the stroma, the middlesection of the cornea. Pulses from a computer-controlled laser vaporize a portion of the stroma and the flap is replaced.

Or this:

Surgical procedures aimed at improving the focusing power of the eye are called refractive surgery. In LASIK surgery, precise and controlled removal of corneal tissue by a special laser reshapes the cornea changing its focusing power.

But luckily, those two excerpts probably contain more than what most people need to know about the LASIK procedure itself. In fact, I believe that as long as you know that LASIK is a permanent procedure, done using a laser, and possibly a blade (blade-less surgery is now available), and that it reshapes the cornea changing its focusing power, that’s probably quite enough.

Of course, it is necessary to accept that pain is part and parcel of Lasik surgery, especially during the application of the laser. It is also necessary to realise that Lasik is not perfect and it could fail. You will also have to accept that Lasik will not grant you 20/20 vision in most cases, and that repeat operations could be required.

By now, I’m sure that many will think that I’m trivializing the various risks involved in LASIK. However, what I’ve been talking about so far only concerns the general principles and facts behind LASIK eye correction surgery for people in general, no more than that.

If you are a prospective patient, you will definitely have to know much more than this. Given the technology arms race that vision clinics seem to engage in, there are numerous new technologies that you might have to delve into, such as iris registration technology. Most importantly, you will also need a doctor’s complete briefing on the various risks and safety procedures LASIK entails.