Frequently people find old-fashioned glasses bulky and cumbersome, while others find contact lenses a hindrance to their active lifestyle. While eyesight is a gift, gaining one’s eyesight back through the development of modern technology has become more accessible and manageable. With most people opting for permanent solutions, the options can be diverse and hard to choose from. You may face the dilemma of picking between Contoura Vision, SMILE, and Lasik. While all three surgeries are trusted by most and safe, they can confuse you about what procedure to choose.

Fear not; here, we will cover the evolutionary changes in corrective eye procedures so that you can gauge what suits your needs best and make the right decision when you decide to get rid of your contact lenses or glasses.

Here is a table summarizing the above information:

Lasik Eye Surgery

What is Lasik eye surgery?

Also known as Laser-Assisted in Situ keratomileusis, this procedure uses two lasers– the femtosecond laser creates the hinged flap, and the excimer laser remodels the cornea under the flap.

People opt for Lasik treatment because vision tends to get blurry when light does not accurately focus on a retina, leading to a condition dubbed as “refractive error.”

What are the conditions Lasik can treat?

1. Farsightedness (hyperopia) – People who suffer from this condition tend to see things far away more clearly, but become more blurry as they get closer to the object in focus.
2. Shortsightedness (myopia) – Objects are very clear when the person suffering from this condition is close to them, but the object becomes blurry when they move away from it.
3. Astigmatism – Irrespective of where one stands, every object, be it near or far, looks blurry. The reason for this is to do with corneal curvature or flatness.
4. Presbyopia – Associated with age, this occurs when the eye lens loses its ability to focus on objects close to the person.

Contoura Vision Eye Surgery

What is Contoura Vision eye surgery?

This surgery is also known as Topography-guided Lasik surgery or Robotic Lasik because the surgery is performed under topical drop anesthesia. Introduced in the United States in 2015 and approved by the USFDA for vision correction, this advanced technology utilizes an Aberrometer to capture 22000 data points of the cornea’s front surface, creating a customized corneal map through topography. Further, every point is analyzed for abnormality and is corrected through laser treatment.

Is there special post-surgery eye care included with Contoura eye surgery?

Yes! Firstly, post-surgery eye care plays an essential role as surgery does. The Contoura post-surgery eye care includes anti-inflammatory eye drops and antibiotics prescribed for optimal healing and recovery.

SMILE Eye Surgery

What is smile laser eye surgery?

SMILE stands for Small Incision Lenticule Extraction, similar to Lasik and sometimes known as Refractive Lenticule Extraction or RELEX. The surgery is often used to treat shortsightedness (myopia), but concerning astigmatism, the surgery can be used for up to 5 diopters.

How does the procedure take place?

Being a bladeless, quick surgery, the surgeon utilizes a femtosecond laser to create a minute arc-shaped incision on the cornea’s surface. With this same laser, the lenticule is removed from the cornea. The vision then gets corrected due to the change in the corneal structure. Usually, the corneal incision heals within a few days and ensures long-lasting and stable eyesight.

An analysis of the best surgery is based on a few key factors.

1. Quality of vision

Lasik: Provision of normal vision

Contoura Vision: Provision of the sharpest vision, with two out of every three patients experiencing better vision than the normal 6/6 visual activity.

Smile: Provision of normal vision

2. Safety

All three procedures in question boast certificates from the highest safety standard in the world- US FDA.

3. Pain and discomfort

All three procedures are painless as anesthetic drops are used before surgery. You may experience slight pressure during the surgery and subtle discomfort 3 to 4 hours post the surgery, often controlled with painkillers.

4. Post-surgery eye-dryness

All patients inevitably face eye dryness in the postoperative period. This is usually countered with lubricating drops and goes away after 2-3 months. All three procedures cause a similar level of eye dryness, which eventually disappears.

5. Recovery

Lasik: Fast recovery

Contoura Vision: Vision starts clearing two hours after the surgery, and by the following day, a patient’s vision is back to normal.

Smile: It takes seven to ten days to see clearly after this procedure due to Lenticule extraction.

6. Retreatment

There may be rare instances where post-surgery, a slight spectacle power may remain or develop during the healing of the eye. Hence, re-correction must be done utilizing laser enhancements.

Lasik: Retreatment is possible and is as effective as Contoura vision

Contoura Vision: It is relatively easy to enhance if done within the first post-op year.

Smile: Retreatment is relatively tricky if the procedure does not produce the desired result.

7. Precision

All three procedures are bladeless techniques; the whole procedure uses one or a combination of lasers. The bladeless method ensures higher precision, more safety, and better quality of vision.

Lasik: It utilizes two lasers; Femto Laser and Excimer Laser.

Contoura Vision: Uses a combination of lasers, namely, Femto Laser, Excimer Laser, and Topolyser.

Smile: Uses only a Femto laser.

8. Cost

The cost for surgery as complex as this can vary significantly after an evaluation of the eye is done. The determining factor for the surgery’s cost depends more on the complexity of a refractive error.

Lasik: Rs 40,000 to 1,35,000/- for both eyes.

Contoura Vision: Rs 55,000 to 1,40,000/- for both eyes.

Smile: Rs 60,000 to 1,40,000/- for both eyes.

Which one should I opt for – Lasik vs Contoura vs Smile?

Contoura vision can seem the best when viewed at a glance since it incorporates the latest technology; moreover, it is only for some. A comprehensive eye examination will help you decide which treatment best suits your needs.