The quality of the results of a photoablative
refractive surgery procedure is
determined by a number of factors.
From amongst these, two anatomo-physiological
factors play a critical role in influencing
firstly the action of the laser beam and secondly,
the repair reaction started up by the stromal-
epithelial complex, as a response to the
wound. These factors reside in the degree of
smoothness of the surface on which the laser is
applied and in the protective system of the
post-photoablation residual stroma. The connecting
link between these two aspects is the
method used for preparing the stromal bed to
be treated, which represents the first stage of
the keratorefractive operation with the laser.
There are two basic procedures for preparing
the stromal bed: the creation of an epithelialstromal
flap (LASIK technique) and the
corneal disepithelialization (PRK technique).
The LASEK technique was proposed with
the goal of combining the advantages of both
methods and of eliminating the possible risks
associated with them at the same time. It provides
for the removal of the epithelium, as an
integral epithelial flap, to be repositioned on
the treated stroma at the end of the laser treatment.
With the aim of ascertaining the efficacy
of the LASEK method, a large number of
pre-clinical and clinical studies have been conducted
to evaluate the two critical factors cited
at the beginning, i.e. the surface on which the
laser is applied and the consequent repair reaction
of the stromal-epithelial complex