Lasik and Lasek are two types of surgeries performed on the eye. These two types of surgery carry some differences between them in terms of their performance, methods, equipment and the like.
It is important to know that both Lasik and Lasek types of surgeries are laser eye surgeries. They both differ in the method to treat the top layer of the cornea. In the case of the Lasik method of treatment a flap is made by cutting around the cornea. The eye surgeon does not actually remove the epithelium.
On the other hand the eye surgeon completely removes the epithelium during the performance of the Lasek method of treatment. It is completely removed to enable the laser to re-design the cornea. This is the main difference between the two laser methods.
In the case of the Lasik method of surgery, the surgeon replaces the flap once the cornea is reshaped. In that case the flap gets altogether a natural look. This is the beauty of the Lasik method. On the other hand the epithelium is again replaced on the surface of the eye once the cornea is reshaped in the case of the Lasek method of eye surgery.
The real challenge in the Lasek method lies in the keeping of the epithelium in tact. It is done by the help of a soft contact lens. It is generally felt by the eye surgeons that the Lasik method is more popular than the Lasek method because of the number of advantages the Lasik method enjoys.
One of the primary advantages of the Lasik method is that it takes lesser time to perform when compared to the Lasek method. As a matter of fact it takes only about 15 minutes to perform the Lasik method of eye laser surgery. It is equally true that the level of discomfort on the part of the patient is very low in the case of Lasik method when compared to the Lasek method.
On the other hand Lasek method takes more time to complete and it may cause certain amount of discomfort to the patient as well. It is important to note that both these methods of surgery would take into consideration other factors before being applicable to the patient. The other factors pertain to the health of the patient. Hence the surgeon would conduct various tests before choosing either to perform on the patient.