Wavelight Technology in Laser Eye Surgery

What is Wavelight?

Wavelight is a company that manufactures lasers and systems for the use in laser eye surgery. Recently it has concentrated on developing a new type of technology called Wavelight.

Wavelight technology is a relatively new procedure used by the wavelight Allegretto system in laser eye surgery. It involves using wavefront technology to scan your cornea to produce a map of co-ordinates in your initial consultation. This is done using the Wavelight Allegro analyser, which then projects the image back onto your eye. Once the wavefront scan is complete the data is used by the Allegretto Wave to plan the best course of laser treatment for your eye. During the procedure the laser is guided very precisely and uses special technology called Perfect Pulse, which ensures the very short laser pulses are directed at the right areas. This also allows any movements of your eye to be tracked and compensated for in the operation.


In essence, wavefront is the procedure of mapping out the front of the eye that is done by the wavelight equipment.

In clinical trials done by the FDA (Food and Drugs Administration) it was found that this could decrease the incidence of night time symptoms such as glare and starbursts. It is currently the most widely used laser system on the market.

There are 3 main types of lasers which use wavelight technology:

Allegretto Wave

This was the first system that used wavefront technology. It has a 200Hz frequency rate, meaning it fires 200 pulses per second. It can alter where the laser is targeted to every thousandth of a second and has unique Perfect Pulse technology which precisely directs every laser beam into the eye, whilst compensating for slight eye movements. Finally it has NeuroTrack technology, which enables it to correct astigmatism more effectively.

Allegretto Wave Eye-Q

This laser can fire 400 pulses per second and correct its target extremely fast. Just like the Allegretto wave, it is able to compensate for your eye movement during the procedure. The newest addition to this system is Custom Q, which allows the ophthalmologist to customise your treatment even further.

Concerto

This is wavelight’s newest system, incorporating Allegretto Wave Eye Q and one of the world’s best lasers. It is capable of firing a beam up to 500 times per second and has the fastest rate of beam correction available to date. This is one of the best laser systems on today’s market.


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