What are flap folds or wrinkles? (Posted: jan 2005)

Flap folds are when the LASIK flap literally takes on a wrinkled appearance, not lying flat and smooth across the corneal stroma.

How do flap folds happen and what surgery(-ies) are they associated with? (posted: jan 2005)

Flap folds are a complication of LASIK. They can happen due to poor flap quality or problems in manipulating the flap during surgery. They are most likely to happen in patients with high amounts of correction.

What are the potential results to patients' vision? (posted: jan 2005)

Major flap folds can have the same effect as irregular astigmatism, causing loss of BCVA, ghosting and other visual symptoms. With smaller folds, and particularly in patients who may have other complications such as ablation defects, it can sometimes be difficult to determine whether the folds are affecting the vision and if so how much.

How can flap folds be diagnosed? (posted: jan 2005)

By slit-lamp examination.

How can flap folds be treated? (posted: jan 2005)

To smooth out folds, the flap has to be lifted, irrigated and stretched. Some surgeons prefer to suture the flap to the stroma to prevent recurrence. Ideally, folds should be treated sooner rather than later because the longer they are left alone, the longer will be the temporary visual effects of the lift-and-stretch procedure.

Where can I learn more about flap folds? (posted: jan 2005)

Click here for the Encyclopedia entry for macrostriae, which may have additional articles and links.