{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/what-is-smile-vp\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/what-is-smile-vp\/","headline":"What is SMILE and how does it work?","name":"What is SMILE and how does it work?","description":"Alex Shortt discusses SMILE, how it works and how it differs from conventional LASIK. ","datePublished":"2019-07-10","dateModified":"2020-08-13","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/author\/alex-shortt\/#Person","name":"Alex Shortt","url":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/author\/alex-shortt\/","identifier":4667,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6afb756e1dc43ed28773098aff9af37d7e16c92671dbd22f5a9bbcb21063c139?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6afb756e1dc43ed28773098aff9af37d7e16c92671dbd22f5a9bbcb21063c139?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Alex Shortt","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/alex-shortt-logo-white-600x140-1.png","url":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/alex-shortt-logo-white-600x140-1.png","width":600,"height":140}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/what-is-smile-and-how-does-smile-work-alex-shortt-london-1.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/what-is-smile-and-how-does-smile-work-alex-shortt-london-1.jpeg","height":675,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/what-is-smile-vp\/","video":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw#VideoObject","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw","name":"What is SMILE and how does SMILE work?","description":"In this video, Alex Shortt explains what SMILE laser surgery is and how it differs from LASIK. Using a model eye, Alex demonstrates that like all forms of laser eye surgery, SMILE is performed by reshaping the cornea on the front of the eye. A laser is used to scalp the shape of the contact lens or glasses lens onto the surface of the eye, effectively reconfiguring the eyes optical system so that it is perfectly in focus. The key difference between SMILE and LASIK, is that a keyhole surgery technique is used instead of open surgery. This results in quicker recovery time and far less eye dryness. To learn more about SMILE laser surgery, please visit our website https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/relex-smile\/\n\nMy website: https:\/\/www.alexshortt.co.uk\/\nTwitter: https:\/\/twitter.com\/Alex_Shortt\nFacebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AlexShorttConsultant","thumbnailUrl":["https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/BIsX9mDq9Uw\/default.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/BIsX9mDq9Uw\/mqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/BIsX9mDq9Uw\/hqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/BIsX9mDq9Uw\/sddefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/BIsX9mDq9Uw\/maxresdefault.jpg"],"uploadDate":"2019-01-02T16:26:39+00:00","duration":"PT3M24S","embedUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BIsX9mDq9Uw","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCZUjyjYPfXKxV8WVHx7-rqA#Organization","url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCZUjyjYPfXKxV8WVHx7-rqA","name":"Alex Shortt","description":"","logo":{"url":"https:\/\/yt3.ggpht.com\/ytc\/AIdro_lso6QF066XazZwtWqloc_izxh7N6G8qXGEkS7aPYOur9A=s800-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj","width":800,"height":800,"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw#VideoObject_publisher_logo_ImageObject"}},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw#VideoObject_potentialAction","target":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw&t={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"},"interactionStatistic":[[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_WatchAction","interactionType":{"@type":"WatchAction"},"userInteractionCount":658}],{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BIsX9mDq9Uw#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_LikeAction","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":1}]},"about":["Laser Eye Surgery","LASIK","SMILE Laser Eye Surgery"],"wordCount":788,"articleBody":"What is SMILE and how does it work?Interview transcriptionWe interviewed Alex Shortt to find out how ReLEx SMILE works and how it differs from conventional LASIKAlex Shortt: All forms of laser eye surgery work on the cornea. If I show you this model, the front, transparent window on the eye is called the cornea. The reason we need to wear glasses is that the focusing power of the eye hasn\u2019t developed quite accurately and our eye is effectively like a camera that\u2019s out of focus. When we wear contact lenses or glasses, we place a lens in front of this optical camera system to correct the focus, placing light in focus on the back of the eye.If we want to get rid of the need to wear glasses, what we can do is use a laser to sculpt the shape of the contact lens or the shape of the glass\u2019 lens onto the surface of the eye. Effectively, you\u2019re reconfiguring and rebalancing this optical system, so it\u2019s perfectly in focus. And that\u2019s how all laser eye surgery works. It\u2019s by reshaping the cornea on the front of the eye here.Now, how we do that is similar between laser eye surgery techniques, but some differences make a significant impact on the patient\u2019s experience. With the first generation of laser eye surgery, we used to remove the skin from the surface of the eye and apply the laser directly to the surface. That was painful and came with a lengthy recovery period.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSearch for:\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRecent Posts\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\u2018Can I wear make-up before and after laser eye surgery?\u2019\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHow long does laser eye surgery last?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSMILE v LASIK v PRK – What Are the Different Types ?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCan I get laser eye surgery?\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA clear look into the types of laser eye surgery in London\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTake the eye surgery self-test to see if you qualifyNot everyone is a candidate for eye surgery. Find out if laser eye surgery could help you ditch your glasses and contact lenses by taking this fast quizTAKE FAST SUITABILITY QUIZWith LASIK,\u00a0 when we make the flap in the cornea, open the flap, perform the laser sculpting and then replace the flap on the surface of the eye. Because we perform the treatment deeper in the cornea, the eye doesn\u2019t realise anything\u2019s been done. LASIK was a huge step forward.The way ReLEx SMILE works is very similar to LASIK. We perform the reshaping deeper in the layers of the cornea, leaving the surface untouched. However, the key difference with ReLEx SMILE is that we do it using a keyhole surgery technique. This way, we avoid a big and open wound. We do everything through a tiny 3mm keyhole incision. A good way of thinking of it is that SMILE is very similar to LASIK, except performed through its keyhole incision rather than open surgery.Interviewer: Presumably, with that keyhole incision, there is less dryness because of less interference with the cornea and faster healing time?Alex Shortt: Yes! This is because the surgical injury to the eye is a 3mm incision rather than a 26, 27mm incision. But also, with the peeling open of the flap and the way the flap is made, there\u2019s more damage to the nerves of the cornea with LASIK. That\u2019s the critical difference between ReLEx SMILE and LASIK. With LASIK, there is significant damage to the nerves of the cornea, and then they heal. Somewhere between six and 12 months, they\u2019re usually fully healed. But with ReLEx SMILE, you don\u2019t have that severe injury to the nerves of the cornea and the speed of recovery of the nerves and any dryness or impact of that is far less with ReLEx SMILE.If you\u2019d like to know more about vision corrective surgery, book a free initial screening today and I will personally answer your questions. Alternatively, take our free suitability quiz to find out which treatment you are suitable for.Share This PostAbout the authorMr Alex J. Shortt | Consultant Ophthalmic SurgeonMB BCh MSc PhD FRCOphth PGDipCatRefI’m Alex Shortt, a highly trained academic researcher and Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon based in London\u2019s famous Harley Street medical district. I trained and worked as a consultant for 14 years at London\u2019s Moorfields Eye Hospital. I specialise in advanced technologies for correcting vision, including cataract surgery, implantable contact lenses and laser vision correction.Learn more about meGet a complimentary vision assessment todayComplete the form below to chat with a member of my team. Discover if you’re suitable for a life changing vision correction procedure\t\/* Add your own Mailchimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block.\t   We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. *\/    \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \t        I consent to receive valuable and relevant e-mails\t\t\t\t\t\t                "}