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Why you should choose ELZA
ELZA doctors are global leaders in Laser Eye Surgery research, diagnosis and treatment
We perform customized wavefront-guided treatments since 2004
We do not only use the latest technology – we actually helped develop it
No more hassle (and risk of infection) with contact lenses.
No more foggy glasses 🙂
At the beach, on the tennis court, in the swimming pool – clear vision at all times.
Your vision correction is made to last.
Laser eye surgery involves using an excimer or femtosecond laser to change the shape of the clear part at the front of your eye, the cornea, to correct your vision.
Laser eye surgery can correct both refractive error (shortsightedness, farsightedness) and astigmatism.
Among the options for laser eye surgery are Femto-LASIK, TransPRK and KLex (SMILE, CLEAR, SmartSight).
Laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) involves the creation of a “flap” in the cornea with a femtosecond laser. The patient is then moved to a second laser – the excimer laser – and the flap is lifted. The part of the cornea that is revealed is then reshaped by the excimer laser. The flap is then closed. The LASIK method exists since 1995.
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Kerato Lenticule Extraction (KLex) is a modern laser eye surgery where a femtosecond laser creates a tiny, lens-shaped piece of tissue (called a lenticule) inside the clear front part of your eye (the cornea). This piece is then gently removed through a very small opening, helping to reshape the cornea and improve your vision – without the need for cutting a flap.
While KLex is the term for all procedures cutting lenticules, various companies have created their own brand names: “SMILE” by Carl Zeiss, “CLEAR” by Ziemer Ophthalmics and “Smart Sight” by Schwind eye-tech solutions.
By the way: no other international group has published more scientific studies on the biomechanics of SMILE than us.
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Every eye is different, and each method has pros and cons. For example, while LASIK has a fast visual recovery, it weakens the cornea more than the other methods, and occasionally, complications can occur that are related to the flap. These include flap detachment, and epithelial cells migrating and growing in the flap.
KLex has a relatively fast visual recovery, and leaves a stronger cornea than LASIK, but removing the lenticule can be challenging (especially with small corrections). Failure to extract the lenticule completely can cause big problems, as unlike LASIK and TransPRK, postoperative enhancements (i.e. Re-SMILE) can be problematic, especially for small corrections.
TransPRK has a slower visual recovery than the other methods, but avoids the potential flap complications of LASIK, and the lenticule removal issues of KLex. Because TransPRK is a flapless procedure, this means that the cornea is also stronger afterwards than a post-LASIK cornea, which is why we typically recommend this procedure.
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What if you have a disease of your cornea or a scar after an accident or infection? What if your cornea is extremely uneven after corneal transplantation (keratoplasty). And finally, what can be done if you had unsuccessful and complicated laser eye surgery elsewhere with a bad outcome?
ELZA is one of a few centers in the world with extensive experience in therapeutic refractive laser surgery to reapir corneas and restore functional vision. We fix the most challenging cases.
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Why Us
At the ELZA Institute, your eyes are in expert hands. Our team includes world-renowned eye specialists, like Prof. Hafezi, who has over 20 years of experience in laser eye surgery. He treats some of the most complex cases and even helped develop the very laser we use in our clinic. He also serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of Refractive Surgery, the leading international journal for laser vision correction.
Our research team is one of the most active in the world when it comes to studying corneal diseases. This means we truly understand both your eyes and the technology we use—so you can feel confident that you’re getting the best care and the best possible results.
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Dr. Lilly Khamsy is a Swiss-trained ophthalmologist and oculoplastic surgeon (FMH). She obtained her medical degree from the University of Geneva and completed a doctorate in ophthalmology at the Jules Gonin Eye Hospital in Lausanne. She has held positions at the University Hospital in Bern and served as Head of the Surgical Clinic at the Jules Gonin Ophthalmic Hospital. Since 2023, she practices at Swiss Visio Valère in Sion, specializing in cataract and pterygium surgery, eyelid surgery, and general ophthalmology.
Dr. Roman Netzer is a specialist in cardiology and general internal medicine (FMH). He has been practicing in Lucerne since 2002, with a focus on non-invasive cardiology, including echocardiography, stress echocardiography, nuclear cardiology, and invasive procedures such as pacemaker implantation. He is affiliated with the Hirslanden Klinik St. Anna and operates his own practice in Lucerne.
Dr. Nikolaos Chatzis is a Swiss-certified dentist (SSO) and medical doctor. He holds a postgraduate qualification in oral implantology (WBA SSO/SGI). He practices in Reinach, Aargau, where his clinic focuses on implantology, prosthodontics, and reconstructive dentistry.
It can take up to 2 hours to complete all of these comprehensive assessments so that we can plan the safest surgery with the best-possible visual outcomes.
We use two different lasers for refractive surgery. The SCHWIND AMARIS excimer laser, which we co-developed. It is currently the fastest and safest excimer laser available worldwide. The Z8 femtosecond laser from the Swiss company Ziemer. This is among the most advanced femtosecond lasers in the world, and the company is highly committed to ongoing research and innovation.
Yes, presbyopia can be treated with laser surgery. Get in contact – we would be more than happy to discuss the possibilities modern refractive surgery offers.
Unfortunately, this isn’t possible. During the initial examination, we need to dilate the pupils, which prevents us from performing surgery on the same day.
Yes.
The surgery will take place in our own operating room at the ELZA Institute in Dietikon.
The surgeon will discuss the risks directly with you during the preliminary examination. Generally speaking, the risk of serious complications is well below 1 percent. Eye laser surgery has become one of the safest surgical procedures in the world these days. The immense experience of our surgeons helps to reduce this risk even more.
No syringes! The eye is anesthetized with eye drops and the entire operation is painless.
It would be preferable to be accompanied. We recommend not to use public transport alone and of course, driving immediately after the operation is prohibited by Swiss law.
No.
It can last 30 minutes from entering the room to leaving but you’re only under the laser for around 5 minutes, and the laser procedure itself usually takes about 30 seconds.
No. You must be completely free of makeup on the day of surgery, so we recommend thoroughly removing it the night before. Please avoid wearing any makeup for at least one week after the procedure.
You will not experience any pain before or during the laser surgery. You might experience some pain in the first 72 hours after the operation, but we provide you with effective medications that will relieve this effectively.
You will always be operated on by the surgeon that performs the preliminary eye examination, unless something else is arranged.
No. After laser surgery, the eye is protected with a bandage contact lens. An eye patch is only needed at night to prevent rubbing the eye or sleeping on that side.
Ideally, you should take time off work depending on the type of surgery. For TransPRK, we recommend one week, while for FemtoLASIK, four days are usually sufficient.
You can resume sports after one week. For swimming, sauna, and other water activities, we recommend waiting an additional week (i.e., two weeks after surgery). Most importantly, avoid rubbing your eyes!
Only up to the neck. Be careful to avoid getting any water in your eyes, not even a single drop, as even the famously ‘clean’ Swiss water can contain bacteria and parasites.
Your vision will be blurry, but you will still be able to orient yourself.
We examine your eyes daily for the first 3–4 days, then again at 1 week. After that, follow-up exams are scheduled at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months.
In the first few weeks, your vision will improve overall. However, there may be hours of half days in between when vision is poor. In the second to third week in particular, your vision may deteriorate slightly due to the healing process. This is normal and should not worry you.
We will give you a pack full of everything you need to take after the surgery, and explain how and when to use the eyedrops.
You might experience one or more of these symptoms within 72 hours after laser surgery, but the eye drops we provide should help. We will see you every day during the first week, so there is no need to worry. If you have any concerns, please contact us at the ELZA Institute or come visit us. Outside of opening hours, you will be given an emergency contact number.
The reason we place a bandage contact lens in your eye after laser surgery is mostly for your own comfort. If you lose the bandage contact lens in the evening, you can wait until the next day to see us.
You can fly, without restriction, 5 days after undergoing laser surgery, although as airplane cabins are very dry environments, we encourage you to use lubricating eyedrops liberally during the flight.
In principle, it’s a lifelong effect. Your distance vision should remain unchanged over decades. The only issue might be the onset of presbyopia, which starts at around the age of 45 years, which can make it harder for people to see objects nearby.
No. In the contrary: the implanted corneal ring segment adds additional tissue to your cornea.
Candidates for CAIRS typically have corneal steepness between 50 and 70 diopters and a minimum stromal thickness of 300 micrometers. The expected outcome is a flattening of the cornea by five to more than ten diopters. The procedure also allows for the possibility of further corneal improvements through additional treatments, such as ELZA-PACE (ELZA’s own customized cross-linking) or wavefront-guided transPRK.
Yes. Whether your cornea is progressive or stable is an issue that will be addressed with corneal cross-linking (CXL).
Femto-CAIRS has a different effect, it reshapes the cornea for better vision. Femto-CAIRS can be used in both stable or progressive keratoconus. In the latter, it will be combined with CXL.
All Femto-CAIRS represents an approach in corneal treatment that combines the use of human corneal tissue with laser technology, aimed at addressing corneal irregularities with a focus on both safety and customization to each patient’s cornea.
The beauty of All Femto-CAIRS is that it adds additional tissue to the thin keratoconus cornea (additive surgery). In a next step, the cornea and the patient’s vision can be further improved with other treatments, such as ELZA-PACE and/or wavefront-guided PRK.
The price of Femto-CAIRS depends on several factors, including the individual staging of the patient’s disease and whether one or two ring segments are necessary.
Femto-CAIRS is a complex procedure and involves detailed planning of the placement, length, and width of the ring segment, the preparation of the ring segment from a human donor cornea provided by an eye bank, the planning, calculation, positioning and creation of the corneal tunnel in the patient’s cornea, and implantation of the ring segment under intraoperative control of an optical coherence tomographer (OCT)
The total treatment time including calculation of the profile can take up several hours for the surgeon and his team. All these factors and the additional cost of a human cornea provided by an eye bank make the procedure considerably more costly than a ring implantation with a PMMA plastic ring segment.
Femto-CAIRS is typically recommended for patients with advanced keratoconus who are intolerant to contact lenses and are seeking better visual outcomes with glasses. Your doctor will evaluate your condition and determine if you are a suitable candidate for the procedure.
Yes. You should stop wearing contact lenses at least 2 weeks prior to the preoperative assessment to ensure accurate measurements for surgical planning.
Systemic medications rarely affect the cornea, but it’s important to inform your doctor about all medications you are taking.
Femto-CAIRS is performed under local anesthesia. You will be awake during the procedure but will not feel pain in the eye.
It’s normal to experience:
These symptoms typically last 2–3 days. Vision may be blurry initially but should gradually improve over the following weeks.
Most patients can resume normal daily activities, including work or school, within 5 days, depending on their individual healing and the nature of their job.
Full visual recovery may take several weeks, with some fluctuation in vision during this time.
To promote proper healing, avoid the following:
Some patients notice improvement within a few days, but vision may fluctuate. Final visual stabilization can take up to 3 months.
Yes, but only after the eye has healed and your doctor approves.
You may still require glasses or contact lenses for best vision. Your care team will advise you on when and how to resume lens wear.
Yes, follow-up is essential to monitor healing and the position of the ring segment. Typical follow-up schedule includes:
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