The main difference between LASIK and Custom LASIK is the treatment of higher order abberrations which can significantly reduce night time glare and sharpen poor night time vision.
With the Bausch & Lomb Technolas® 217z Zyoptix(TM) System for Personalized Laser Vision Correction, your doctor can advance your vision to a new level of precision and clarity. The US clinical trial of the Zyoptix(r) system demonstrated not only a significant reduction in reports of night driving difficulty following treatment, but also showed significant reductions in reports of light sensitivity, blurred vision and headaches.
Further, objective vision testing demonstrated that Zyoptix treatment significantly improved constrast sensitivity (CS) under mesopic, or dim light, conditions. In fact, more than one in five cases showed a dramatic improvement in CS greater than 2 lines. Contrast sensitivity testing helps determine how well patients see in difficult viewing situations such as in very dim light, rain, snow or fog.
Why does this matter? A recent national survey conducted by Road & Travel magazine identified some important findings among drivers primarily wearing glasses or contact lenses:
* Nearly a third (32%) report having significant
difficulty driving in the dark
* Nearly half (48%) report experiencing glare or
light sensitivity while driving in the dark
* More than two in ten (21%) report blurred vision
while driving in the dark
* Almost two in ten (19%) report experiencing
headaches while driving in the dark
Recently, WJAC TV's reporter Kattie Sabatino underwent Zyoptix treatment and filed a story about her experience. Visit http://www.wjactv.com/news/14527353/detail.html for the full news coverage about how Zyoptix(r) treatment corrected the poor night vision that Katie experienced throughout her life.
Custom LASIK versus Traditional LASIK
While LASIK addresses lower order aberrations such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness) and cylinder (astigmatism); Custom LASIK additionally treats higher order aberrations that affect clearity of vision in many people.
Your eye is as unique as your own fingerprint, with its own special shape and complex characteristics that make it unlike any other. The best treatment is one that is unique to you. To better understand your particular vision and any impairments you may have, the Zyoptix(TM) system maps thousands of data points -- producing a fully detailed, three-dimensional picture of your cornea's shape and characteristics. Your doctor can then provide a unique treatment for each eye, resulting in personalized vision correction that is as individual as your eye.
Small imperfections in the shape of the eye can cause a scattering of light, which in turn can contribute to vision impairment. This scattering of light forms distinct patterns within the eye known as aberrations. The innovative design of the Zyoptix(TM) personalized laser vision correction system allows your doctor to measure these aberrations, then plan a treatment that exactly matches the eye's individual vision errors. Custom LASIK will provide minimal benefits for people with minor aberrations. Our doctors will examine all information to determine how Custom Lasik may benefit you.
The following are the typical advantages of a Custom LASIK procedure over results obtainable by traditional LASIK (or PRK).
