Laser eye surgery treatment: Are there any ReLEx SMILE laser eye surgery risks?

Are there any ReLEx SMILE laser eye surgery risks?

Well clearly, in common with all corneal surgery, we’re making incisions in the cornea and as soon as we do that we are the possibility of infection. But with SMILE, it’s a smaller incision, it’s less intrusive and the surface heals more rapidly, and so the risk infection has to be smaller. The period of time where the eye is vulnerable is shorter. So that risk is managed.

It is possible to have a slightly dissented treatment with SMILE laser eye surgery, but that risk is extremely small. One of the beauties of SMILE laser eye surgery with the vision max laser from ZEISS is the patient fixates on the target at the point of application of the laser. As a surgeon, I can see where the patient is fixating. So, even that risk can be eliminated because I’ve assessed the patient’s fixation before surgery and at the time of surgery, I can make sure that their fixation is perfect. And if it isn’t, we just don’t proceed. That’s really the worst thing that could happen. So I could say: “Look, I’m really sorry. I can’t proceed with the treatment today.

An incredible thing about SMILE laser eye surgery is that I look at that patient in the following day, I haven’t performed any surgery but I have started incisions with the SMILE laser, and the following day the incisions are invisible, and the patient can just put on their spectacles and they will have a completely normal vision. I can’t think of another operation where you can start and then stop, and it’s like you’ve done nothing. That patient could if they wanted to say: “Actually, this isn’t for me.” and leave it there. More usually a week or two later, we can just go ahead and perform the treatment very safely, and the previous episode has no impact on it whatsoever.