1-888-LASIK-19
Official Partner
LA Galaxy Soccer Team Rajesh Khanna, M.D.
Welcome to Keratoconus website, please upgrade your Flash Plugin and enable JavaScript.
How do Intacs Work?
Beverly Hills, California
Intacs are very small plastic devices which are used to correct mild nearsightedness and keratoconus. Both nearsightedness and keratoconus involve a cornea which is too steep in its curvature. When Dr. Khanna implants a pair of Intacs into the cornea, with one on each side of the iris, the corneal curvature is flattened enough to improve vision.
Nearsightedness is caused by corneal steepness because that steep curvature refracts incoming light too sharply for it to focus on the retina. Instead, the light focuses in front of the retina and gives blurry vision.
Keratoconus is a bulging cornea. Keratoconus occurs when the cornea is too thin or is weakened and becomes unable to retain its curvature against the eye’s internal pressure. The causes of keratoconus are not known. It is a progressive disease with no cure. But it can be managed so that the patient is able to live a normal life. Please refer to the Keratoconus and Keratoconus Symptoms pages for more information.
Intacs are approved by the FDA for treatment of both nearsightedness and keratoconus. Recent studies show that Intacs may even be a better option than contact lenses
The Intacs procedure is reversible
If a patient finds that vision remains somewhat unclear after the Intacs procedure, or if any visual symptoms are experienced, Dr. Khanna will be able to remove the Intacs. Intacs are available in different sizes, and Dr. Khanna will determine whether Intacs of a different size could be inserted. This secondary procedure could provide sharper vision.
Intacs are known as additive technology. This means that the Intacs are added to the eyes to improve vision, rather than any tissue being removed from the eyes for that purpose. LASIK corrects nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism (but not keratoconus) by removing corneal tissue. It uses different technology than that of Intacs, but it delivers a similar type of result – the cornea’s curvature is changed. But because corneal tissue was removed, LASIK is not reversible, whereas Intacs are a reversible procedure.
The Intacs Procedure
The insertion of Intacs is an outpatient procedure requiring about 15 minutes. Dr. Khanna would use anesthetic eye drops and perhaps a mild sedative to help in reducing any anxiety. The patient would need to arrange for someone to take them home.
Dr. Khanna creates two tiny channels outside the central optical zone, one on each side of the iris. They are in the stroma, which is the layer beneath the surface epithelium. The stroma is also the layer where the LASIK laser does its vision correction treatment.
Depending on the degree of visual impairment, Dr. Khanna will choose Intacs of a certain thickness and insert them into the channels. Thicker Intacs give a greater flattening effect, and are used for more severe nearsightedness or keratoconus.
After some rest in our pleasant and comfortable office, the patient may return home. There will be noticeably clearer vision immediately, but two or three days of rest will be beneficial in expediting the healing. You will not have any awareness of the Intacs’ presence because they are inserted below the cornea’s nerve endings. They are also not easily visible to anyone looking at you.
If you have keratoconus which has progressed too far for Intacs to be effective, a corneal transplant would be another treatment option. Please use our Keratoconus Questions page if you would like to read more about keratoconus.
We would be glad to give you a personal consultation if you would like to know more about Intacs, and whether they might be a good option in your case. Please contact us. We serve the greater Los Angeles and hope to meet with you soon.