[Judy Fortin, Cnn Anchor:] Millions of people can see clearly now thanks to laser eye surgery. For others, current technology can be a costly mistake correcting nothing. So a new more precise laser procedure offers another option for people who choose surgery to correct their vision. CNN medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta has details.
[Sanjay Gupta, Cnn Medical Correspondent:] Britt Bishop has been wearing glasses or contacts for the past 20 years. He has had enough.
[Britt Bishop, Patient:] They get in the way sometimes. If you go in the water, you lose a contact. Playing softball, dirt gets in your eyes, or you lose a contact. So I'm just ready to be free of glasses.
[Gupta:] Britt decided to undergo a new type of laser surgery. It's called wavefront lasik surgery, and it's a cut above conventional lasik treatment. The wayfront system sends a wave of light through the eye, mapping all of the defects, allowing for custom surgery, instead of a one-size-fits-all approach.
[Unidentified Male:] The technology allows us to measure the eye in a more precise way so that we can get them sharper, clearer vision.
[Gupta:] Like traditional lasix, a thin layer of cornea that's the clear outer covering of the eye is peeled back. What's new is that the laser is used to perform a custom reshaping of the underlying layer.
[Unidentified Male:] Keep looking straight up for me right at those lights.
[Gupta:] It takes about 15 minutes per eye with little pain and costs between $1800 and $2800 per eye, which is about $500 more than the conventional lasik. It is rarely covered by insurance.
[Unidentified Male:] So it gives patients a fairly user-friendly surgery. That is, they can have the surgery one day and resume their normal lifestyle the next day.
[Gupta:] About four million patients have had successful lasik surgery. But there are still are risks. Bad night vision, glare, halos occur in about three percent of patients. And the new wavefront technology reduces flaws to just one percent. Other risks include dry eyes, blurred vision, and, in rare cases, infection and possible loss of vision. The surgery is irreversible. The best way to reduce risks is to get a thorough eye evaluation and to work with a reputable surgeon. Britt has had no complications and now sees with 2020 vision.
[Bishop:] I can just wake up and I have vision. It's perfect.
[Gupta:] Like most patients, Britt was able to go back to work the very next day. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.