The 60 kHz femtosecond laser: faster times, smoother beds and better visual results

Is time still an issue?

A frequent criticism levelled at the femtosecond laser when it first became commercially available was the amount of time needed to create a corneal flap. With the 15 kHz femtosecond, the typical flap creation time averaged slightly more than one minute, while with the 30 kHz femtosecond, flap creation time took between 35 and 40 seconds. With the 60 kHz femtosecond laser, however, flap creation time drops to around 20 seconds - just about on par with the time it takes to create a flap with a microkeratome.

In a survey of their initial clinical results with the 60 kHz laser, Richard Lindstrom, MD and Elizabeth Davis, MD, Minneapolis, Minnesota, found that all six surgeons who used the femtosecond laser at their laser centre rated the stromal bed quality as very smooth. The surgeons also found that the flap quality and side cut quality were good with minimal attachments and no need for dissection in order to separate the flap from the stromal bed.

Uniform flap thickness and greater predictability