World-Class Wavefront Technology for Laser Eye Surgery
Operated by our World Class Laser Eye Surgery Team
We believe that having the very best of technologies available at our fingertips is second only to having the in-depth knowledge and years of experience required to use it. Hence, we have been working closely with WaveLight Technologies since the early days and are proud of our status as a Beta Site and Ambassadors for their work and research on wavefront technology. Our patients experience an unparalleled combination of technology and surgical experience, making our team unique in the UK for laser eye surgery.
Our clinical team led by Mr Chad Rostron FRCS, a world renowned corneal specialist and NHS consultant has been actively involved in bringing about much needed change in refractive laser eye surgery in the UK. Accuvision are also global ambassadors to the WaveLight brand group (whose laser platforms have achieved the best results in FDA trial results) and are actively involved in the development of future laser eye technology.
Accuvision use the WaveLight Allegretto Eye-Q 400 Hz custom excimer laser. Quite simply it is the fastest excimer laser available in the UK today and takes 10-20% off the time that most other lasers would need to do similar treatments. Together with the Tscherning wavefront analyzer, through its in-built prolate profile enhancement, the Allegretto produces superb clinical outcomes.
Not only is it fast during laser eye surgery, it is also very accurate. Unlike standard lasers the WaveLight Allegretto Eye-Q 400 Hz custom excimer laser produces a rounded, sharply-focused profile measuring only a fraction of a millimetre across. This enables the surgeon to smoothly remove the minutest amounts of corneal tissue with the highest degree of accuracy. The WaveLight Allegretto Eye-Q laser is also able to use the high resolution data compiled during the laser eye surgery consultation procedure to produce much larger, more uniform treatment zones, vastly improving night vision results. It also enables Accuvision to treat patients with large pupils with the utmost efficacy.
Some key features associated with the Allegretto Wave laser from WaveLight AG include:
- The Allegretto is the fastest eye correction laser available in the world today. To correct one dioptre of vision takes just two seconds which means your treatment is over more speedily, reducing the stress that you could feel during treatment.
- The precision and speed of the Allegretto Wave's excimer laser is achieved through PerfectPulse Technology™. Every single laser pulse is completely controlled from the moment it is created to where it meets the eye. Each ultra-thin laser pulse is used to sculpt the corneal surface of the eye with the utmost precision.
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- Safety is built in to the Allegretto laser through its Smart Energy Control. After the laser beam has been created, it passes through three checkpoints on its way to your eye. At each of these points, the energy level is checked and adjusted if necessary, to ensure that the beam is perfect before reaching the eye.
- Eye movement during treatment is a concern to many patients. The Allegretto has built in Eye Tracking Technology. The eyes position is measured every 4-6 milliseconds, that's 200 times per second. Before any laser pulse is released a final check is made a fraction of a second before. If for any reason you move your eyes fast or look away, the laser will automatically stop and wait for the eye to return to the right position for further treatment.
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- Wavefront-optimised technology is used to create a large optical zone by automatically compensating for the curvature of the cornea. WaveLight AG have incorporated a system that adjusts for the individual curvature of the patients cornea so that a larger optical zone is created during laser eye surgery, whilst maintaining the spherical shape of the eye. Problems with poor night vision, glare and halos are thereby avoided leaving the patient with the very best visual outcome.
With recent advances in technology our laser procedures are safer, faster and more effective than ever before. You can see our audited results for laser eye surgery here.
Find out more about the Allegretto laser and WaveLight AG.
Understanding the precise condition of your eyes is of paramount importance before any treatment is recommended and that is why we undertake a comprehensive consultation to provide you with the very best options for your condition.
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The Aberrometer
To correct vision using laser eye surgery we must first determine the individual irregularities of the eyes that limit the quality of the retinal image. Light rays enter the eye as flat sheets known as wavefronts. If the optical system is perfect (which is unusual), these wavefronts exit the eye as regular, flat sheets.
When the cornea or other components of the optical system have imperfections, higher order aberrations are created, causing the wavefronts to exit the eye as irregular curved sheets of light. These irregularities or aberrations in the way the light exits the eye can now be measured and recorded using a device known as the 'aberrometer'.
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Wavefront Analyzer
Wavefront technology is used to measure both lower and higher order aberrations (visual imperfections in the eye's optical system). By addressing all aberrations we are able to offer a laser eye surgery treatment that will give you the very best results possible. The way it works is as follows:
A grid pattern of rays of light are passed through your eye using a computerised wavefront measuring instrument (the WaveLight Analyzer). As the light waves travel through your eye's optical system, the imperfections in the eye distort the grid pattern. The Analyzer captures the image of the grid pattern on the retina at the back of the eye, and then calculates the imperfections within the eye by how much the grid has been distorted from a perfect arrangement.
A three-dimensional map is then produced representing the unique visual distortions in your eye, including both the lower and the higher order aberrations. The information contained within the map is then transferred to the WaveLight Allegretto Wave excimer laser, to be used to guide the laser as it reshapes the cornea during laser eye surgery, providing you with a perfectly customised laser vision treatment.
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Wavefront Allegro Topolyzer
The basis for a successful assessment of visual disorders is an accurate diagnosis. The ALLEGRO Topolyzer has been specifically designed to measure and generate high resolution data for eyes with severe irregularities. It was developed for the most difficult cases for laser eye surgery, in which standard wavefront measurement would prove clinically ineffective.
With an extraordinarily high resolution of the cornea resulting from 22,000 measuring points and a large placido disc, the ALLEGRO Topolyzer is an incredibly accurate tool for the examination of the most complicated vision disorders and is able to accurately identify Keratoconus and also has a pupillometry reading.
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The WaveLight Allegretto and Pentacam
As the WaveLight Allegretto is the most advanced laser available for laser eye surgery and the only laser to have been built right from the start for CUSTOM procedures, it is also the only laser currently ready to accept data from the Pentacam device to add another custom laser eye surgery procedure to our options. The Pentacam has very quickly established itself as the premium device to obtain corneal information of visual significance. The Topolyser is the gold standard for overall topography of the cornea with especially good information from the peripheral cornea. The Pentacam is the new gold standard for topographical information especially from the central cornea (hence the visual quality).
The Pentacam uses a sophisticated Scheipmflug camera system that scans the anterior eye (cornea, anterior chamber, iris, and lens) and takes up to 25,000 measured data points in a scan time of 2 seconds per eye. From all this data a 3D model of the eye is constructed that can be viewed and analysed by the laser eye surgery surgeon. This information helps the surgeon to make sure the recommendations for laser eye surgery will be as safe as possible. The 3D capability of the image can also help identify if lens implants for very near or farsighted patients might be a better option than laser surgery.
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Custom Laser Treatments For Short Sight FDA Trial Results
**Best results in bold type
| Laser Type | WaveLight Allegretto Wavefront Optimised | WaveLight Allegretto Wavefront Guided | VISX S4 Low Short Sight | VISX High Short Sight | Baush & Lomb Zyoptix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK clinic using this laser | Accuvision | Accuvision | |||
| Year of FDA trial | 2006 | 2006 | 2003 | 2005 | 2003 |
| % of patients with 20/20 vision ** Higher = Better |
92.8% | 93.4% | 93% | 84.3% | 91.5% |
| % of patients with better than 20/20 vision ** Higher = Better |
75% | 63.9% | 73.6% | 65.2% | 70.3% |
| % of treatments that were very accurate **Higher = Better |
95.2% | 94.6% | 90.3% | 77% | 75.99% |
| % of treatments that were moderately accurate | 100% | 99.3% | 99.3% | 95.5% | 93.8% |
| Comparison of typical vision before to after: % not as good **Lower = Better |
14.8% | 13.9% | 20.9% | 21.9% | 21.8% |
| Comparison of typical vision before to after: % same or better **Higher = Better |
85.2% | 86.1% | 79.1% | 78% | 78.2% |
| Measure of small degree loss of vision **Lower =Better |
2% | 2% | 8.7% | 6.5% | 5.9% |
| Measure of gain in best vision possible | 98% | 98% | 91.3% | 92.5% | 94.1% |
| % of patients needing second treatment **Lower = Better |
0% | 2.7% | 3.4% | 2.2% | Not Reported |
**Best results in bold type
**All results are at six months - the results are publicly available at www.fda.gov
**WaveLight Allegretto used at Accuvision clinics out performs all other lasers
