ABSTRACT
Refractive surgery is a mysterious concept for most lay people, who equate it to laser treatment for short-sighted eyes. Delivered by lasers and controlled by computers, the treatment is believed, by the patient, to be infallible, wide ranging in its capabilities and painless. In fact, photorefractive keratectomy, alias laser treatment for myopia, is an extremely fallible and limited process accompanied by severe pain and ocular discomfort for many hours after treatment. However, the wider concept of refractive surgery embraces many techniques applicable to most refractive errors with well-understood risks and benefits, despite the infancy of some methods.
