For residents of Houston, Texas and the surrounding area contemplating LASIK (Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis) eye surgery, which is an intricate eye-operating procedure in which the Houston LASIK surgeon or eye specialist reshapes the corneas of the eyes using a laser system to improve the corneas' ability to refocus light on the retinas, should consider their local-area options as far as finding a surgery clinic, private practice, or surgeon.

Patients choose this eye surgery for a number of medical reasons, the most common being for eye conditions such as astigmatism (when the cornea is ellipsoidal in shape rather than spherical, which can affect and blur vision), far-sightedness, near-sightedness, and for those who wish for a lasting eyesight-correction treatment that will rid them permanently of their contact lenses or eyeglasses.

Whatever your reason or reasons for considering this eye surgery in Houston, Texas, something you'll want to consider when choosing a Houston LASIK surgeon or surgery clinic, and something you'll want to find out after you've already made your decision, is the type(s) of procedures and techniques that will be used for operating on your eyes. After all, it's important for you to find out from your surgeon exactly what will be done to your eyes to "fix" them, and how it will be done.

The basic "essence" of this eye surgery, as opposed to other types of eye surgery, such as LASEK (Laser-Assisted Sub-Epithelial Keratomileusis) and PRK (Photo-Refractive Keratectomy), involves the use of a laser system-specifically, a microkeratome metal blade in order to cut a thin flap into the cornea and then an excimer laser to reshape the cornea and the eye-in order to correct the cornea and improve overall vision.

The cornea flap is then returned to its original spot following this laser-based operation. This procedure is generally considered basic surgery, or conventional LASIK, and may or may not be the preferred method used by your particular Houston LASIK surgeon, or the surgeon you're considering.

However, more and more clinics and private practices in Houston (and other parts of the U.S.) that offer this surgery either exclusively or as one option amongst other eye-operating procedures are using more advanced and specialized procedures and techniques.

For example, a technique referred to as Custom Wavefront LASIK or Custom Vue LASIK is becoming more popular amongst eye specialists and surgeons worldwide. This technique differs from the tradition surgery in that special technological software called "Wavefront" is used to guide the excimer laser. Wavefront essentially "maps" out the optical system so precisely that this highly advanced software is actually 25% more accurate than conventional LASIK, thereby improving vision even more.

Your Houston LASIK surgeon could also inform you that he or she specializes in a technique called Conventional IntraLasik. In this procedure, a specialized device called the femtosecond Intralase laser is used instead of the traditional microkeratome metal blade to cut the flap into the cornea before the laser-based reshaping occurs. The advantage to using the Intralase laser over the metal blade is that a much thinner and much more precise flap can be cut and created, thereby eradicating possible flaws and imperfections the microkeratome may cause. However, this procedure tends to be a bit more expensive, and the incision using the laser takes about a minute, rather than the mere seconds required by the microkeratome blade.

A technique known as Custom Vue IntraLasik combines Custom Vue LASIK and Conventional IntraLasik by utilizing both the Intralase laser to cut the flap and then the Wavefront software technology to guide the excimer laser in reshaping and correcting the cornea for maximum results. Keep in mind, however, that this type of surgery is generally the most expensive. Ask your surgeon about Custom Vue IntraLasik, whether or not he or she is trained, skilled, and experienced in this method, and about the specific costs involved.