TORONTO, Feb. 7 /CNW/ - A Toronto resident is the first in Canada to have access to a revolutionary new corneal transplant procedure - IntraLase-Enabled Keratoplasty(TM) (IEK(TM)) - shown in clinical studies to result in a potentially safer surgical procedure, which may result in faster healing and
better visual results for patients suffering from severe corneal disease or damage.

"IEK is the greatest advancement we've had in corneal transplantation in 50 years," says Corneal specialist, Dr. David Rootman, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Toronto. Dr. Rootman, who works out of the Yonge Eglinton Laser Eye Centre, is the first surgeon in Canada to perform IEK. "Preliminary clinical work with IEK demonstrates that by creating incision edges that fit together in an interlocking design, the graft is more stable, and therefore may heal faster," Dr. Rootman states.

The IntraLase(R) FS laser is the first laser to creating complex shaped incisions that enable recipient and transplant tissue to fit together, much like an intricate puzzle. Incisions may be customized to an individual patient's condition, resulting in a potentially stronger graft that may require fewer sutures, and enable faster healing and visual recovery.Before the advent of the IEK technology, corneal transplants were traditionally performed using a hand-held, bladed "cookie cutter" called a trephine, which was stamped onto the cornea to make a circular incision with straight, vertical edges. The transplanted tissue graft required considerable suturing, and sutures remained in the patient's eye for at least one year, generally prohibiting full visual recovery during that time. Conversely, fewer and/or looser sutures are needed with the IEK technology and, in initial cases, sutures were removed before six months.

"It is gratifying to be involved with the introduction of a new technology that has the potential to revolutionize a surgical procedure," says Jay Herman, President of Sigmacon Medical Products, Canadian distributor for IntraLase. "Dr. Rootman and fellow surgeons from Toronto Western Hospital have taken a pioneering step in corneal transplant surgery."

More than 100 successful corneal transplant surgeries have been performed since the first IEK corneal transplant cases were announced in January 2006. Data collected from 23 initial IEK cases demonstrated significant improvement in vision over traditional trephine-initiated corneal transplantation.

How it works

Instead of the straight vertical cut performed in trephine-initiated corneal transplantation, the IntraLase FS laser is programmed by the surgeon, using IntraLase's patented computer interface, to create precisely shaped incisions in both the patient's diseased cornea and the transplant tissue. Then, the laser's infrared light beam is precisely focused to a point within the cornea where microscopic bubbles are formed to establish the incision. The laser is able to create complex incisions that are nearly impossible for the manual, handheld trephine.

For further information: Contact: Yonge Eglinton Laser Eye Centre, David S. Rootman, MD, FRCSC, (416) 603-5401, fax: (416) 603-1993; Sigmacon Medical Products Corp., Terry O'Reilly, 1-800-898-7455 (x251)