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A patient came in who had had cataract surgery in the past and had some astigmatism, and they weren’t happy with the quality of their vision and distance without glasses. They wanted to see what we can do about correcting their astigmatism, and give them sharper, better vision without glasses for driving.
What is Astigmatism?
Astigmatism, in simple terms, happens when the cornea, the clear part of your eye, is slightly shaped more like a football than a basketball; that is, it’s steeper in one direction than it is in the other direction. When light focuses to the retina in the back of the eye, the light is not focused to a sharp, clear point but is focused to a line. That is the reason why people who have astigmatism, looking at streetlights at night or car headlights, have the streak; it’s because of the astigmatism not focusing everything to a clear point.
What Do We Do About the Astigmatism?
At the Cataract & Refractive Institute of Florida, we have several options for treating astigmatism after cataract surgery or even sometimes during cataract surgery.
One choice is that we can make an incision along the edge of the cornea near where the white part (the sclera) starts, and we can make an incision on the steep side of the football to let that relax slightly and then take a shape more similar to the other side, the other direction of the cornea. That will then get rid of the astigmatism.
Another option that we have is called conductive keratoplasty or CK. In this method, a collagen probe is placed on the long side of the football, and this probe shrinks the collagen in that part of the cornea. That brings that cornea down so it matches the steep side on the other side.
The last choice would be, if there was a lot of astigmatism, then someone could have a laser procedure such as Lasik, Lasek, or even the older term, PRK, to correct their astigmatism. If they have any nearsightedness or farsightedness, that can be corrected at the same time.
Pretty much when Dr. Croley performs these procedures, he chooses between CK and an LRI (Limbal Relaxing Incision) depending on what the overall strength or prescription for the eye is. That is, if someone is slightly nearsighted, then he does an LRI with the incision, so that way, it stretches that part and makes a person slightly less nearsighted.
If someone is a bit on the slightly farsighted side after their cataract surgery and has astigmatism, then Dr. Croley uses CK, because CK is going to steepen the cornea and make someone less farsighted. Depending on the situation, we determine that, and then we choose the most appropriate way of correcting someone’s astigmatism. This works very well, and so if someone out there has astigmatism and that’s all they have, nothing else, then there are some reasonably easy options on how to correct it.
If you have any questions about astigmatism or any other problem, contact the Cataract & Refractive Institute of Florida today to schedule an appointment. If not, may God bless you with healthy eyes and great vision.
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Eye Care Specialists in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, and Nearby Areas
At the Cataract & Refractive Institute of Florida, our board-certified ophthalmologist uses state-of-the-art tools and techniques to help patients manage their eye issues and vision problems. Schedule an appointment online or call our office near you!
Eye Doctor Cape Coral FL Office
- 613 Del Prado Boulevard, 33990
- (239) 772-2122
Eye Doctor Lehigh Acres FL Office
- 1150 Lee Boulevard, 33936
- (239) 368-1020
- 4061 Bonita Beach Road, 34134
- (239) 949-1190
