DNA Test is a Must before Lasik surgery

Many people are wondering about Lasik and Lasek surgeries because those are one of the most popular surgeries for eyes. Moreover, it is hard to reject the possibility of getting better vision for those of you who have worn either glasses or contacts for years. However, the eyes play a very important role in our lives and this fact makes us to hesitate to have surgery on the eyes. BS eye has focused on the medical documentation for a long time and issues the proof of medical record to every patient in order to fulfill customers’ satisfaction. One of the frequent questions I get from patients is about Avellino Corneal Dystrophy (ACD), a genetic disorder.
The research says that one person in every 870 people suffers from ACD in Korea. Moreover, it is well-known that ACD can cause the blindness. As discovered by many researches, the ACD is caused by hyper protein precitipation, called Hyaline, in Cornea. Most patients starts to show this symptom when they become teenagers and their visual acuity is dramatically declined in their 60’s or 70’s. ACD does not display visible symptoms on its early stage. In addition, it depends on many external factors such as environmental factors, the duration of wearing contacts and etc. In most cases, the slit lamp microscope does not recognize ACD. Especially, someone who has a genetic factor of ACD will be affected by simple stimulus on his/her eyes. In this case, the vision correction surgery, like Lasik or Lasek, which operates directly on the cornea might leads patients to very dangerous situation. To prevent the worst scenario like this, the Avellino DNA Test is a mandatory before surgery.
The BS Eye Center performs Avellino DNA Test for every single person who is willing to have the vision correction surgery. The DNA test that BS Eye Center performs is AGDS™ Test which extracts DNA from epithelial cells on cheek, blood cells, and hair roots. It is very simple and easy and the result will be notified within 4 hours. However, most ophthalmologic clinics let the patients decide whether to have the Avellino DNA Test or not because of the cost issue. Patients usually do not have enough information about ACD. ACD is a very serious disease which may lead patients to the blindness. Therefore, all ophthalmologists should perform Avellino DNA Test before surgery in order to prevent the worst case scenario.

Article by JinKook Kim, M.D.
President of BS Eye Center