PRK surgery, or photorefractive keratectomy, is a laser treatment used for moderate forms of short sightedness, long sightedness and astigmatism. Like most other laser eye surgeries it reshapes the lens of the eye known as the cornea. One of the reasons people have the sight problems mentioned above is because light is not being properly reflected. Laser surgery works on the eye’s cornea so that light falls in the proper place and enables the patient to see more clearly.

There are a number of different laser techniques that are used to reshape the cornea. In PRK eye surgery, the laser delivers a pulsing beam of ultraviolet light onto the surface of the cornea. In LASIK eye surgery, which is the most common form of laser correction, the beam is directed underneath rather than on the surface of the cornea. As with LASIK, PRK surgery is performed under local anaesthetic; the procedure takes about ten minutes for both eyes.