Laser Correction Pioneer: Dr Joseph Dello Russo Was First in the Northeast to Treat Complex Vision Problems With 'Flying Spot' Technology (article en anglais)

The “ Flying Spot” laser, which is officially called LADARVision laser technology, recently received approvals from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of farsightedness (hyperopia) with or without astigmatism using the LASIK technique. Anyone wearing glasses or contacts for distance can now be treated entirely by LADARVision.
Since 1991, when the first LASIK procedure was preformed in the United States, approximately 800,000 people have had this elective procedure done on one or moth of their eyes. The numbers of surgeries have more than doubled every year since 1997. Despite these numbers, approximately 45 percent of what are called refractive errors – eyesight problems corrected with glasses or contacts could not be corrected by laser – until now.

Joseph Dello Russo, Director of the Dello Russo Laser Vision in Manhattan, is the first in the Northeast to introduce and popularize LADARVision. Dr Joseph Dello Russo, considered a pioneer in the field of laser vision correction, having performed more than 18,000 laser procedure since 1990, was one of the 19 FDA investigators during the clinical trial.
According to Dr Dello Russo, “With the LADARVision system approval, we can now treat near-sightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, farsightedness with astigmatism, or any combination of the above which they call mixed astigmatism. Everyone is now a candidate for laser correction as long as their eyes are healthy.

The “Flying Spot” LADARVision system has several advantages over the first generations lasers. First, LADARVision is the only approved and commercially available laser that uses a radar eye tracking and small-spot 1mm scanning technology. This is especially significant because during and laser vision correction procedure, the eye moves in tiny ways. These involuntary movements are completely nautral.
They are also impossible to predict or prevent.
The “Flying Spot” laser adapts Star Wars technology from NASA’s Strategic Defense Initiative era to develop the tracker in order to address the problem of involuntary eye movement. In simple terms, the Flying Spot laser has the ability to actively track the tiniest eye movement and within seconds retarget the beam to the correct spot on the cornea. Hence, “Flying Spot.”
Secondly, the ‘cold’ laser beam is delivered in a very fine spot that literally flies over the cornea and gently reshapes it. The amount of corneal tissue that is removed is less that the width of a single human hair.


The result is a very smooth treatment area that gives superior visual results and assists in rapid healing.

Finally, LADARVision patients typically do not complain of night glare and halos that one hears from patients treated with first-generation lasers. Because LADARVision treats a larger area of the cornea, it virtually eliminates the possibility of developing such problems following treatment.
LADARVision is a product of Alcon, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas, a global leader in the research, development, manufacturing, and marketing of ophthalmic products.
 
Source : communiqué de presse