Wavefront guided LASIK also know as wavefront or custom LASIK is the newest and most advanced form of LASIK surgery being performed. It takes into account the microscopic structure of your cornea to create a surgery customized for your eye. No two procedures using this technology are alike.
The wavefront analysis is not a new technology but has only recently started to be applied to the eye. It scans your eye and produces a 3-D color map of the different curvatures of the cornea. This, along with other factors such as the type of refractive error you have (myopia, hyperopia), degree of refractive error and the thickness of your cornea allows your doctor to give you a surgery with the best results.
The main benefit of using custom LASIK procedures like this is to correct for more than just your acuity, otherwise known as 20/20 or 20/x vision. Before wavefront, it was harder to predict which patients may be subject to glare, halos and trouble with night vision after having LASIK. These undesired effects are due to what are known as higher order aberrations. They produce the glare and reduced contrast sensitivity. Older LASIK procedures only corrected for the lower order aberrations like sphere and cylinder. Lower order aberrations are what your glasses or contacts correct for. The wavefront scan uses complex equations to come up with the best “map” of your eye and to give the greatest chance of a successful outcome.
Because this is the newest type of refractive surgery, it is also the most expensive. LASIK eye surgery price in general varies only by a few hundred dollars between the older procedures and custom LASIK procedures like wavefront LASIK. The average price for wavefront LASIK is about $2,200 per eye. Prices will vary depending on area of the country and local factors such as competition and cost of living.
As with any surgery it is a good idea to get a second opinion and do thorough research before choosing a doctor. Look for one with lots of experience not only with refractive surgery in general but with this type specifically.
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