Archive for the ‘Astigmatism surgery’ Category

Lasik eye surgery

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

In medicine, lasers are routinely used as cutting tools with the added benefit that their burning action seals and clots a cut immediately. As an example, in laser eye surgery or even ulcer removal surgery, tissue can be removed without damaging surrounding areas.

Combining scientific theory and brilliant engineering, it is one of the most innovative, fascinating, and commercially successful devices ever built. Lasers provide precise, selective and controlled high-power light beams for a variety of uses… more info at: www.arrivacostarica.com

How does LASIK work?

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

LASIK is the most commonly performed refractive surgery procedure. You may hear people calling it “LASIX,” but the correct name is LASIK, which is short for “laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis.”

Why is it so popular? LASIK has advantages over other vision correction procedures, including a relative lack of pain afterward and the fact that good vision usually is achieved by the very next day.

An instrument called a microkeratome is used in LASIK eye surgery to create a thin, circular flap in the cornea. Another, newer way of making the flap is with a laser.

The surgeon folds the hinged flap back out of the way, then removes some corneal tissue underneath using an excimer laser. The excimer laser uses a cool ultraviolet light beam to precisely remove (”ablate”) very tiny bits of tissue from the cornea to reshape it.

When the cornea is reshaped in the right way, it works better to focus light into the eye and onto the retina, providing clearer vision than before. The flap is then laid back in place, covering the area where the corneal tissue was removed.

Both nearsighted and farsighted people can benefit from the LASIK procedure. With nearsighted people, the goal is to flatten the too-steep cornea; with farsighted people, a steeper cornea is desired. Excimer lasers also can correct astigmatism by smoothing an irregular cornea into a more normal shape.

ArrivaCostaRica.com is the primary web site for information about plastic surgery and dentistry in Costa Rica. See www.arrivacostarica.com

Astigmatism

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

“What is a stigmatism?” is a question that eye doctors hear every day, but actually it’s spelled “astigmatism.” Although astigmatism is the most common vision problem, most people don’t know what it is.

Astigmatism may accompany farsightedness or nearsightedness. Usually it is caused by an irregularly shaped cornea (called corneal astigmatism). But sometimes lenticular astigmatism results from an irregularly shaped lens, which is located behind the cornea.

Either kind of astigmatism can usually be corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, or refractive surgery.

What Causes Astigmatism?

Astigmatism occurs when the cornea is shaped more like an oblong football than a spherical baseball, which is the normal shape. In most astigmatic eyes, the oblong or oval shape causes light rays to focus on two points in the back of your eye, rather than on just one. This is because, like a football, an astigmatic cornea has a steeper curve and a flatter one.

In regular astigmatism, the meridians in which the two different curves lie are located 90 degrees apart. In irregular astigmatism, the two meridians may be located at something other than 90 degrees apart; or there are more than two meridians.

Regular astigmatism is usually easy to correct (see treatments below), but irregular astigmatism can be complicated and more difficult to correct, depending on the extent of the irregularity and its cause.

Usually astigmatism is hereditary: many people are born with an oblong cornea, and the resulting vision problem may get worse over time.

But astigmatism may also result from an eye injury that has caused scarring on the cornea, from certain types of eye surgery or from keratoconus, a disease that causes a gradual thinning of the cornea.

Astigmatism Treatment

Unless it is extreme, astigmatism can be compensated for satisfactorily with eyeglasses or contact lenses.

If your eyeglass or contact lens prescription contains three parts rather than one, your eyecare practitioner has found some astigmatism in one or both of your eyes. A prescription with three parts looks like this: -2.75 -1.25 x 90.

  • The first part indicates your main spherical correction, meaning the amount of power (in diopters) required in a lens to sharpen your visual acuity to an acceptable level, usually 20/20. In this example, the person has myopia and requires a negative (concave) lens to correct it.
  • Part two shows the extent of the astigmatism in diopters. Again, the minus sign means a concave lens is needed.
  • Part three is the axis (in degrees) of the cylinder required to bend certain light rays to compensate for the cornea’s oval shape.

Many people with astigmatism believe that they can’t wear contact lenses or that only rigid contact lenses (RGPs, also called GP lenses) can correct astigmatism.

This was true many years ago, but now soft toric contact lenses can correct astigmatism. Toric lenses have a special correction built into them and may also contain a prescription for nearsightedness or farsightedness if you need it.

While soft torics work well for many people, if you have severe astigmatism, you’ll likely do better with RGP contact lenses or eyeglasses. Your eyecare practitioner will advise you.

ArrivaCostaRica.com is the primary web site for information about plastic surgery and dentistry in Costa Rica. See www.arrivacostarica.com

Affordable Healthcare and Costa Rica!

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009

Happy with your health insurance? Its probably because you’re healthy and don’t really need it. But when you do get sick, you may discover your insurance doesn’t cover as much as what you thought.

Just when you have the least physical and emotional ability to cope, you find yourself dealing with a financial and bureaucratic nightmare of claims that are refused, and procedures and medications that are denied by an anonymous insurance administrator telling their doctor what they can and cannot prescribe.

Saying the U.S. has the best health care in the world doesn’t make it so.

The World Health Organization ranks the U.S. health-care system 37th, between Costa Rica and Slovenia, behind three South American countries and well behind the much-maligned UK and Canadian systems.

While it’s true we have some of the best technology, research and training for doctors and nurses, if Americans can’t access them, it doesn’t make much difference how great it is. French cuisine is arguably the best in the world, but try telling that to the starving 18th century French peasants who because of their hunger and other sufferings, started the French revolution.

While false fears run rampant about “pulling the plug on Grandma” and government funds for abortion, there seems to be little regard for people between the age of 0 and 65 who are dying, suffering or going bankrupt because they just can’t afford the health care they need.

In this, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, every child, every person, should have access to health care. No parent should have to wait until their child gets so sick that the emergency room is the only option. No one should have to divorce an ailing spouse in order to avoid bankruptcy or poverty. No one should die because they can’t afford to be treated. Access to affordable health care, like freedom and democracy, is a moral issue.

Many insurers and employers, meanwhile, are discovering Costa Rica for exceptional medical and dental care. For more information, please go to www.arrivacostarica.com

Costa Rican hospitals earn an intern… accreditation

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009

Many Costa Rican hospitals and clinics have received certification that puts them on par with U.S. medical centers, a move that national competitiveness authorities know will boost this country’s profile as a prime destination for medical tourism.

Following a six-month review process, the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Facilities (AAAASF) has certified several private surgical and ambulatory centers, such as UNIBE hospital, And top JCI accredited hospitals, or soon to be accredited, include CIMA Hospital, Hospital Clinica Biblica, and La Catolica Hospital.

“The international accreditation of health services allows us to position ourselves among countries such as the United States, where patients are looking for certified qualified,” said Dr. Jorge Cortés, president of the Council for the International Promotion of Costa Rican Medicine (PROMED).

The vast majority of Costa Rica’s medical tourists come from the United States, whose population in many cases lacks affordable health care. Many procedures here are as little as one-third the cost, or less.

Nearly 13 percent of the medical tourists who visit Costa Rica seek cosmetic surgery procedures, while another 35 percent come for dental work, according to a study by the Competitiveness Ministry. In the U.S., insurance companies are beginning to catch on, offering to chip in for travel packages to this Central American country. For more information, go to www.arrivacostarica.com

Savings up to 60% for Plastic Surgery and Dental!

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009

As the new leader in plastic surgery and dental care, Costa Rica offers price breaks of more than $20,000 for common procedures. Travel costs for such procedures are very low, only $158 round trip from Miami for a 2 hour ride, For a complete overview of costs for everything from tummy tucks to face lifts, and dental implants and crowns, along with the very best doctors and dentists in Costa Rica, go to http://www.arrivacostarica.com

Plastic surgery at the lowest!

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

Costa Rica’s capital city, San Jose, has become a mecca for plastic surgery and dental patients. With experienced doctors performing affordable cosmetic surgeries, as well as dentists offering very low prices with amazing dental work, more people are discovering Costa Rica as the best place to refresh their look.

The low cost and state-of-the-art facilities are attracting thousands of medical travelers each year. Here is the main web site for plastic surgery and dental prices in Costa Rica - www.arrivacostarica.com

MEDICAL COST SAVING TRIP TO COSTA RICA

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

A family from Vienna, Virginia saved thousands of dollars when they went to Costa Rica for medical and dental care. Barbara and her daughter Angie had battled with obesity most of their lives. Both mother and daughter had developed symptoms like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and with Barbara, there was also the problem of knee pain because of her higher BMI.

Barbara says “ArrivaCostaRica.com” was the main source of information. We chose Costa Rica for weight loss surgery, because that looked the best to us. We saved about 60% on the cost of gastric bypass surgery in the US.

The Costa Rica hospital was excellent, clean and modern, and with all the up-to-date equipment you can imagine. The staff was very courteous, professional, and spoke English. If someone didn’t speak English, there would always be an interpreter around.

Eleven months later, Barbara and Angie are now enjoying the fruits of a successful bariatric surgery, with Barbara having lost 55 pounds and Angie 80. Their weight-related problems have improved drastically.

Angie’s dad accompanied them on their medical trip to Costa Rica. They stayed at the main surgery recovery inn, Las Cumbres Inn. While there, he decided to check out the dental clinic. Impressed by the level of cosmetic dentistry in Costa Rica, he got his dental bridges, dental crowns, and dental implants in Costa Rica at a huge discount. So, not did her dad save about 50% on the cost, but he also had them done in record time.

All in all, this family from Virginia is very satisfied with their cost-saving and high quality medical and dental trip to Costa Rica.

For the top doctors and dentists in Costa Rica, www.arrivacostarica.com . For Las Cumbres Inn, www.surgery-retreat.com

LOWEST PRICE FOR SURGERY…

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

Costa Rica’s capital city, San Jose, has become a mecca for plastic surgery and dental patients. With experienced doctors performing affordable cosmetic surgeries, as well as dentists offering very low prices with amazing dental work, more people are discovering Costa Rica as the best place to refresh their look.

The low cost and state-of-the-art facilities are attracting thousands of medical travelers each year. Here is the main web site for plastic surgery and dental prices in Costa Rica  www.arrivacostarica.com

NEARLY FREE VACATION….

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

Brenda, who works as an airline stewardess, recalled, “When I found out how much work he needed, I went to the internet,”. Costa Rica came up immediately when I checked for the best price. “I checked out four clinics and hospitals in Costa Rica and found very positive comments everywhere”.

Before long, she and her husband were on their way to Central America on an adventure that was part vacation, part plastic surgery, and believe it or not- part dental.

They stayed at the famous Las Cumbres medical spa and recovery retreat, and settled on an excellent plastic surgeon and dentist in San Jose, which is located in the middle of Costa Rica and is the center for medical and dental procedures.

“It was first class all the way,” Brenda said, with Las Cumbres providing transportation to and from the airport, and to and from all appointments. “I came back looking terrific and I saved many thousands of dollars. It was a dream come true. For the top doctors and dentists in Costa Rica, www.arrivacostarica.com . For Las Cumbres Inn, www.surgery-retreat.com