Recently I have been investigating cameras from Nikon and when you look at what makes the difference between a $200 Coolpix and a $5200 D3S model, you can learn something important about LASIK. In bright light under ideal circumstances they both take great pictures. Why are these two camera that are 25 times difference in price (and the Coolpix is much easier to carry around) is the reason that professional photographers choose the D3S? It must be more than to look cool carrying around a big impressive looking camera. The answer is that It takes a lot more money and a much bulkier camera to do what the D3 can do as compared to the Coolpix. In a phrase the difference is low light capability. The D3 can take pictures that still look good in very dim light whereas the Coolpix (without a flash) cannot. In bright light with high contrast targets, both cameras can easily give 20/20 type sharpness but obviously this is not the whole story or NASA would not have decided to lug some D3S cameras into outer space if a smaller camera would work just as well.

Whether blue, brown or Hazel, the pupil is the entrance to our vision. At Dishler Laser Institute we are continuously upgrading our technology both for research and for patient care. Our most recent acquisition is the Neuroptics pupillometer. This small handheld piece of equipment has an amazing amount of technology packed into a small package. We are all familiar with the concept of the pupil of the eye and it is similar to the aperature of a camera. It is the opening which admits light into the eye that we use for our vision. Any light outside of this entrance pupil is blocked by the iris, or the colored portion of the eye. It is only this tiny pencil of light which is so critical and can make the difference between excellent sight and blurry vision. The size of this pupil becomes important to measure in vision correction surgery and prior to the Neuroptics device we had fewer options. Our prior measurement device which is widely used is the Colvard pupillometer. Although similar in outside appearance to the Neuroptics, it requires the user to guess the pupil size based on a ruler on the screen. This was an improvement from the previous method of holding a ruler up to the eye, but is not nearly as accurate at the Neuroptics device. This is one more example that there is a lot more differences between LASIK centers than one might at first imagine.

For many people who have significant refractive error, their world is a complete blur were it not for glasses or contact lenses. And while these appliances do wonders to help millions of people cope with their poor unaided vision, they leave many with a psychological feeling of being incomplete. Some express their concern as worry about what would happen if they ever lost or broke their glasses, or perhaps if swimming in the ocean their contact lenses were to wash out leaving them helpless. Others are continually reminded of the heavy glasses on their noses, or an irritation often felt with a foreign material floating in their eye. For these people laser vision correction is not about perfect vision, it is about a freedom from the dependence on glasses or contact lenses to live their everyday lives. We understand these serious concerns and try to work with patients in Denver Colorado who want to discuss not only the technical aspects of LASIK but also have concerns about how their vision and improved eyesight can impact their everyday lives.