Femtosecond-laser - State-of-the-Art in refractive and corneal surgery

The rapid progress in refractive surgery over the last two decades was based mainly on the technical development of the excimer laser and the microkeratomes. It Is remarkable that within a comparatively short period of time another laser-system, the femtosecond-laser, working with a completely different principle, has been brought to a routine clinical use in many centres worldwide. In this short overview the advantages of this new cutting technique, as compared to the conventional microkeratomes, its specific complications and its potential for corneal surgery in the near future will be summarized.