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History of Cataract Surgery 1

Cataract surgery has evolved tremendously over thousands of years. Cataracts were initially removed by the “couching method.” The couching method involved using a curve needle to displace the lens to the rear of the eye. It was developed in India and first mentioned in literature as far back as 600 BC by the Indian physician Sushruta. From India, the couching method was brought out West and to China. As you can imagine, the couching method was a dangerous method of cataract removal and often times it left patients partially or completely blind. Over time, the idea of actually extracting the lens from the eye instead of dislodging it posteriorly developed.

During the 2nd century AD, the Greek physician Antyllus developed cataract extraction via the use of suction created by bronze hollow instruments. Believe it or not, there are still parts of Africa which employ couching as the method of cataract removal.

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Posted by Eye Excellence - Monday, March 21, 2011

LASIK: A Historical Perspective Part 3

LASIK itself originates back to Bogota, Columbia in the 1950s. At that time, Spanish Ophthalmologist Jose Barraquer developed the microkerarome. It allowed him to cut thin corneal flaps in an attempt to change the shape of the cornea, a process that was termed keratomileusis. Modern day LASIK surgery uses an excimer laser to help reshape the cornea.

The excimer laser’s precision was utilized for the production of microelectronic devices/chips and semiconductor circuits. In 1980, Rangaswamy Srinivasan, an IBM researcher, discovered that the excimer laser could ablate and reshape corneal tissue without any surrounding thermal injury. Dr. Marguerite McDonald performed the first excimer laser surgery for near sightedness in 1987 and far sightedness in 1993. Eye Excellence’s Dr. Mary Green trained directly under Dr. Marguerite McDonald when she did her Corneal & Anterior Segment Surgery Fellowship at the LSU Eye Center in New Orleans in the late 1980’s. In 1999, Summit Technology was the first company in the US to receive FDA approval to mass manufacture and distribute the excimer laser. Since that time, LASIK surgery has taken off in the United States. LASIK technology is continuing to evolve. The femotosecond laser is now used to create the LASIK flap instead of the microkeratome. In addition, many of the LASIK treatments are now custom treatments which take into consideration the eye’s high order aberrations. We have definitely refined this technique over the years.

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Posted by Eye Excellence - Monday, March 7, 2011