Expert information regarding ophthalmology for students thinking about eye surgeon

So you worked hard at college and received fantastic A-level grades and are now thinking about pursuing a career in ophthalmology. But where to begin? To start with it's vital you research the profession before you make your decision.

In the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, universities can confer ophthalmology degrees. These are The Royal College of Ophthalmologists, the Royal College of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Glasgow. A qualification must be held by an ophthalmologist in order to pursue that line of work in Great Britain. Following the passing of the exams, most of the students often gain placements at the NHS in order to further their practical skills and gain essential knowledge. In fact, a great number of the larger laser eye specialists offer training programs to help people become entirely qualified ophthalmologists. However, most of the time these are vocational courses, which are taken after acquiring a postgraduate qualification.

The technology used by ophthalmologists varies depending upon the eye condition being treated. For an invasive cornea surgical operation a Ziemer LDV Femtosecond precision laser is used. This equipment allows the surgeon to operate on the eye without having to use a blade. There is an OCT (Ocular Coherence Tomographer), which is a new form of non-invasive imaging technology to map out the shape, size and exact contours of the eye. For more specialist conditions there is also Anti-VEGF drugs and Fluorescein angiography treatments. These are simply a few of the procedures and equipment that are being currently used by ophthalmologists.

Corneal transplantation or grafting occurs when a cornea becomes damaged and is replaced by donated corneal tissue. If for instance a person develops Fuchs dystrophy (a degenerative corneal disease which affects both of the eyes) or Keratoconus (a disorder which affects the structure and shape of the cornea) then a cornea transplant is the final solution. This is where donated corneal tissue is grafted onto a damaged eye to restore the damage caused by the corneal disease, with the graft coming from a deceased donor. Keratoconus surgery or cornea transplants or are often categorised as the most severe treatment options for cornea disease - this is because in most cases conditions can be treated by simply wearing corrective lenses.

Macular degeneration is a condition which results in a loss of vision in the macula (the centre of the visual field) due to damage to the retina. As the disease progresses you'll find that vision can become impaired, particularly when trying to read or recognise faces. There are two forms of macular degeneration; dry and wet. The first is caused when the cells in the macula degenerate and accumulate behind the retina. Alternatively, wet macular degeneration is classed as the more serious of the two and is caused when blood vessels grow abnormally in the choriocapillaris behind the retina. As the side-effects of the disease can normally be slowed by taking vitamins or mineral supplements surgery of eye is usually not necessary.

There are a variety of surgeries within a number of locations. The majority of these treatment centres are based in large cities like Leeds, Liverpool and London. Hence, if you are interested in laser eye surgery, London could be the ideal place to find a surgery. Most surgeries are well-established, which means that they will have long waiting lists. An advantage of this means that the clinic staff are vastly experienced. In some cases, they can even be affiliated with licensed opticians hence a sensible idea could be to ask your own optician for their recommendations prior to speaking to an eye surgeon.

Lasik eye surgery is a variety of refractive surgery that helps to fix hyeropia, astigmatism and myopia. As a result, this surgery is a viable alternative to wearing corrective lenses or glasses, which many people dislike wearing. The procedure is similar to other corrective surgical alternatives such as refractive surgery and photo-refractive keratectomy, making it a quick fix solution to eye sight disorders. The procedure involves reshaping and remodelling the curvature of the cornea. The possibility of the eye rejecting the surgery does exist and it could gradually return to its former condition but other side effects are relatively low.

After reading the article you should have a clear understanding whether a career in eye surgery could be the best option for you.

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