The prevalence of myopia has increased worldwide over the last 50 years. Its incidence in the United States and Europe is now almost twice that 50 years ago, and it is even more prevalent in East Asia. Spectacles and contact lenses remain the most common means of vision correction, but the permanent correction of refractive errors, by refractive surgery, has emerged as an attractive alternative. However, such surgery is an invasive procedure that may compromise corneal structure, and post-surgical complications have been reported. We propose a novel, non-invasive approach to permanent vision correction based on a different mode of laser–cornea interaction. Our approach induces the formation of a low-density plasma that produces reactive oxygen species, which react with the surrounding proteins, forming crosslinks and triggering spatially resolved changes in mechanical properties. We show that the proposed method changes the refractive power of the eye, and confirm its safety and stability.

在过去的50年中，近视的患病率在全球范围内呈上升趋势。现在它在美国和欧洲的发病率几乎是50年前的两倍，在东亚甚至更为普遍。眼镜和隐形眼镜仍然是最常见的视力矫正手段，但是通过屈光手术对屈光不正的永久性矫正已经成为一种有吸引力的替代方法。但是，这种手术是侵入性的手术，可能损害角膜结构，并且已经报道了手术后的并发症。我们提出了一种新颖的，非侵入性的永久性视力矫正方法，该方法基于激光-角膜相互作用的不同模式。我们的方法诱导了低密度血浆的形成，该血浆会产生活性氧，并与周围的蛋白质发生反应，形成交联键并触发空间分辨的机械性能变化。我们表明，所提出的方法可以改变眼睛的屈光力，并确认其安全性和稳定性。