Is SMILE surgery really safe?

 “SMILE surgery is very popular these days, but it just came out. Is it really safe?”

– International patient at B&VIIT Eye Center

This is a question we get asked frequently by our patients as they are curious about this latest, newest refractive surgery technique. Well, let us begin with the origin of SMILE surgery.

SMILE is the latest advance in laser refractive surgery that helps reshape the eyes. Also, it makes it possible for the light to pass through the eyeballs and focus on the retina, and it originated in Germany.

Here is the principle of SMILE surgery:

1. Small incision up to 2mm made by a femtosecond laser.

2. Laser creates a thin lenticular inside the cornea.

3. The surgeon removes the lenticule through the incision to change the shape of the cornea.

The first-generation laser eye surgery is LASEK, which is a procedure that is required to remove the outer layer of the cornea with the laser. Although it is a safe procedure, downtime for LASEK is longer it causes pain and discomfort.

Within a few years, a Greek doctor by the name of Ioannis Pallikaris was exploring how to do a pain-free operation and developed LASIK. After LASIK came out, it became the most commonly performed laser vision correction procedure in the US. It has a much quicker and more comfortable recovery period compared to LASEK.

Then finally came SMILE, the latest one-step refractive procedure which combines the advantages of LASEK and LASIK. SMILE is a painless procedure that involves neither making flaps nor burning the cornea. The eye specialists take the help of lasers to reshape the corneal layers while leaving the surface completely untouched.

Visual recovery is quite rapid for SMILE, and after one to two days most patients have 20/20 vision. SMILE patients can resume all normal activities, such as wearing makeup and working out. It has no postoperative restrictions the next day and has a low risk of scarring and dry eyes. For that reason, it has become a first-choice option for many patients. As of October 2021, the cumulative number of SMILE surgeries worldwide exceeded 5,000,000. It has become one of the most popular refractive surgeries in the world. 

So who was the founder of this state-of-the-art refractive surgery you might ask? Professor Walter Sekundo from Germany is one of the pioneers of SMILE surgery. It’s been 14 years since he had his first SMILE surgery in Germany in 2006. When SMILE first came out, even the doctor who had operated before was very reluctant. Because it was a very difficult operation back in 2006 when Professor Sekundo performed the SMILE operation.  However many trials and experiences were accumulated, and the performance of the equipment was improved. Because of all of this hard work and process, the SMILE surgery became wonderful and stable as it is now.

Dr. Ik-hee Ryu, who is one of B&VIIT Eye Center’s representatives and an ophthalmologist made a visit to Jena, Germany, a world-class optical city to attend an event led by ZEISS headquarters. The purpose of this visit was to share the reasons and strategies for the remarkable success of SMILE surgery, which is making great achievements in Asia, especially at Gangnam B&VIIT Eye Center.

After meeting with ZEISS headquarters, Dr. Ryu met Professor Sekundo, who is called the “father” of SMILE and exchanged opinions on the development direction of SMILE surgery. After meeting with Professor Sekundo, Dr. Ryu pointed out that the development of SMILE and refractive surgery is the future that ZEISS and B&VIIT must open together. B&VIIT Eye Center promises to create a market for vision correction surgery that enables safer and more precise surgery through continuous research with Professor Sekundo as well as ZEISS, the developer of SMILE in the future.

If you are curious about the differences between LASIK, LASEK, and SMILE, please refer to the link below.

https://blog.english.bnviit.com/2024/01/31/what-are-the-differences-between-lasik-lasek-and-smile/

Would you like to schedule a consultation with B&VIIT Eye Center? Make an appointment using the link below!

https://english.bnviit.com/