EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/276058
78 EW REFRACTIVE SURGERY 7 8 March 2014 by Ellen Stodola EyeWorld Staff Writer LASIK vs. contact lens wear compared in study GET TO THE ROOT OF AN UNSTABLE TEAR FILM LipiFlow ® directly treats the leading cause of tear-film instability and ocular discomfort: Meibomian Gland Dysfunction. See it through your patients' eyes. Despite a world of factors, the leading cause of evaporative dry eye is clear: Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD). LipiFlow ® elegantly targets the meibomian glands using patented Vector Thermal Pulse-VTP TM technology, effectively treating MGD at its source. Because your patients' vision and comfort start with a stable tear film. Choose LipiFlow ® : the only FDA-cleared medical device for MGD. 5151 McCrimmon Pkwy Suite 250 Morrisville, NC 27560 Tel: (919) 467-4007 email: info@tearscience.com www.tearscience.com Call us: (919) 459-4891 t www.tearscience.com Visit www.tearscience.com for complete product and safety information. LipiFlow is a registered trademark of TearScience, Inc. Copyright © 2014—TearScience ® —The Evaporative Dry Eye Experts. All rights reserved. TS_Roots_EyeWorld_FIN.indd 1 14-02-25 3:08 PM continued on page 80 a nd three international sites in Spain, Singapore, and Brazil. " The purpose of this study is to compare patient satisfaction with LASIK and contact lenses for vision correction and to establish a new benchmark to compare LASIK with a popular alternative rather than a hy- pothetical perfect eye," Dr. Price said at the 2013 American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) meeting. He d iscussed results of the study, look- ing at the one-year results of a com- parison of LASIK and contact lenses in patients, primarily highlighting the results from the United States. Previous beliefs and factors Before the study was undertaken, it was known that patients generally have good Snellen acuity with both LASIK and contact lenses and that dry eyes can be a problem for both of these types of patients. There were several points that were unknown before the study as well, including how dry eyes change over time, the quality of night vision after LASIK and with contacts, and how happy patients are with LASIK and contacts. Dr. Price said that based on the results of the study, the satisfaction rate among patients was high with both LASIK and contact lenses. "LASIK results in fewer vision problems with night driving both with former contact lens wearers and former spectacle wearers," he said. In addition, complaints about dry eye were common among those who wear glasses, contact lenses, and who received LASIK. "I think that overall we greatly underappreci- ate how significant dry eyes are in our population," he said. The study The study itself is an internet-based prospective study with two arms, Dr. Price explained. The LASIK patients were evaluated preoperatively, the contact lenses at baseline, and then they are resurveyed at one, two, and three years. The data he spoke about was preliminary one-year data. Patients involved in the study were between the ages of 18 and 60. Those excluded were patients with keratoconus, abnormal topogra- phies, or multifocal treatments. The results he spoke about included 356 people who stayed in contact lenses, 448 who wore con- tacts and then had LASIK, and 154 who wore glasses and then had LASIK. In this video from Hawaiian Eye 2014, Richard Lindstrom, MD, discusses the reasons for the decline in LASIK treatments and his expectations for a rebound. L A SIK is a popular option for those seeking vision correc- tion, and a new study set out to measure patient satisfaction with the proce- d ure compared to contact lens wear. Francis Price Jr., MD, Price Vision Group, Indianapolis, is one of those leading the study, which incorpo- rates 20 sites in the United States R elated videos on ewreplay.org e wreplay.org Hawaiian Eye 2014 Friday 76-87 Refractive_EW March 2014-DL_Layout 1 3/6/14 3:17 PM Page 78