Is SMILE Pro really flapless?
Yes, no flap is created. The surgeon reaches the lenticule through a small incision rather than by lifting a layer of the cornea. The cornea is still cut, and tissue is still removed, so "flapless" describes the access route rather than the absence of surgery.
Quick answer
Yes, no flap is created. The surgeon reaches the lenticule through a small incision rather than by lifting a layer of the cornea. The cornea is still cut, and tissue is still removed, so "flapless" describes the access route rather than the absence of surgery.
A general answer about SMILE Pro, not advice about your own eyes. Only an ophthalmologist who has examined you can answer it for your case.
- Topic
- Technology & terminology
- Answer length
- Quick answer plus detail
- Sourced
- Yes
In more detail
This distinction matters because "flapless" is sometimes used in marketing to imply that nothing structural happens to the cornea. That is not accurate. What changes is that there is no hinged flap to reposition, and no flap to displace later.
Related guides
Subjects this question touches
The pages that answer the subject behind the question, rather than the question itself.
- Procedure SMILE Pro
- Comparison SMILE Pro vs LASIK
- Place SMILE in Dubai
- Procedure SMILE
- Comparison LASIK vs SMILE
It describes what is generally true. Whether it applies to your eyes depends on measurements taken during an examination, and two people asking the same question can receive different answers. Read the answer as a starting point for the conversation, not as its conclusion.
People also ask
The closest subjects to this question, from both question banks.
- What is ZEISS SMILE pro? Technology & terminology
- What is VISUMAX 800? Technology & terminology
- What is lenticule extraction? Technology & terminology
- Is SMILE Pro more expensive than LASIK? Vision correction
- Is SMILE Pro painful? During the procedure
- Is SMILE Pro reversible? During the procedure
More SMILE Pro questions
Sources & further reading
We prefer primary sources. Where a claim comes from a manufacturer, a single study or a regulator, it is labelled as such below.
- Small Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE)
A continuously updated clinical reference chapter covering SMILE indications, technique, outcomes and complications, written for clinicians.
Used for How the lenticule is created and removed; Indications and contraindications; Complication categories; Corneal biomechanics compared with flap-based surgery.
Link checked 22 September 2026
- Laser In Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK)
The equivalent clinical reference chapter for LASIK, used so that comparisons describe both procedures symmetrically.
Used for How LASIK creates and manages a corneal flap; LASIK complication categories.
Link checked 22 September 2026