SmartSight NOVA – A New Level of Precision in Laser Vision Correction

Svjetlost Eye Clinic offers patients SmartSight NOVA, an advanced form of lenticule extraction surgery developed by the German company SCHWIND eye-tech-solutions. The procedure is performed with the SCHWIND ATOS® laser, which a team of Svjetlost doctors led by Ivan Gabrić, MD helped to develop.

SmartSight NOVA keeps all the advantages of the SmartSight method and adds CenTrax® technology for intelligent centration and active eye tracking. In other words, SmartSight NOVA is a SmartSight procedure performed with the help of CenTrax.

How does SmartSight NOVA work?

As with SmartSight, the laser shapes a lenticule inside the cornea. A lenticule is a thin layer of tissue created to match the patient’s exact prescription. The surgeon then removes it through a small opening, and the refractive error is corrected. Unlike LASIK, the procedure does not require a corneal flap. The surface layers of the cornea remain almost untouched, so the risk of dry eye after surgery is lower.

What does CenTrax technology bring?

At the start of the procedure, the laser is gently placed against the eye, and the precision of the treatment depends largely on this moment. This is exactly where CenTrax makes the biggest difference.

CenTrax is digitally connected to the diagnostic devices used to image the eye during the examination. The laser automatically imports these images without any manual input. It recognises the pupil and its centre, and it compensates for eye rotation on its own. As a result, the lenticule is centred on the patient’s visual axis rather than only on the centre of the pupil, which in many people does not coincide with it.

Once the laser is in contact with the eye, the system actively tracks the eye and corrects even the smallest remaining deviations. If the eye shifts during docking, NOVA compensates for the movement and moves the centre of the lenticule to a predefined point. This reduces the error that can occur when the laser makes contact with the eye. Manual marking of the eye before surgery and manual adjustment of the treatment plan after docking are no longer needed.

The easiest way to picture the difference is this. Classic SmartSight is like a precise sight that shows you where to aim. SmartSight NOVA is like a self-guiding system that finds the centre by itself and holds it until the end of the procedure.

This matters especially in real-world conditions, because some people find it easy to keep their gaze steady and others find it harder. SmartSight NOVA is designed to deliver consistent results either way.

What do the results show?

In a retrospective analysis of 376 eyes, Dr Maria Clara Arbeláez compared the outcomes of classic SmartSight and SmartSight NOVA. Before surgery, the two groups were comparable in age, sex, prescription, visual acuity and corneal thickness. Three months after surgery, vision had improved in both groups, but the improvement was more pronounced with SmartSight NOVA:

• 20/16 vision without glasses: 73% of eyes treated with NOVA reached this level, compared with 48% after classic SmartSight. 20/16 is sharper than standard 20/20 vision.
• Better than before with glasses: 80% of NOVA-treated eyes saw at least one line better without glasses than they had seen with glasses before surgery, compared with 57% with the classic method.

Who is SmartSight NOVA for?

SmartSight NOVA is intended for the correction of short-sightedness (myopia) and astigmatism. It is especially beneficial for patients with astigmatism, for whom a good result depends not only on the strength of the correction but also on its exact position and orientation. The surgeon decides which method is best for each patient after a thorough examination.

What is recovery like?

Recovery is just as fast as with SmartSight. The laser part of the procedure takes around thirty seconds and is completely painless, and the small opening heals within 48 hours. Good vision is expected within a few hours of surgery, and patients can return to their everyday activities without restrictions the next day.

Svjetlost and the development of lenticule surgery

Svjetlost Eye Clinic has been involved in the development of lenticule surgery on the SCHWIND ATOS laser from the very beginning. Prof. Maja Bohač, MD, PhD, performed the first SmartSight procedure in Europe, and doctor Ivan Gabrić is the leading surgeon for the application and development of the method in everyday clinical practice. Lenticule surgery on the ATOS laser is supported by more than 25 scientific publications and more than 180,000 procedures in over 90 countries worldwide.

Wondering whether SmartSight NOVA is right for you?

Book an examination for laser vision correction, and our specialists will recommend the best solution for you.