cataract surgery

[skeith]

apparently what they do now is replace the lens inside your eye with an artificial "intraocular" lens.

YOu have the option of a single focus lens which may replicate your near or far sightedness or you can get a multi-focal lens which apparently gives a full range of sight.

Has anyone had any experience with this? I would appreciate any comments on your experiences..

[7/4]

My Mother had it done a few years ago and she seems pretty happy with it.

[skeith]

My Mother had it done a few years ago and she seems pretty happy with it.

thanks 7/4

do you know if she got the single or multi-focal lens?

[7/4]

I think she got the single.

[Hot Ptah]

In my mid-40s, a few years ago, I had both of my lens replaced due to cataracts and had them replaced with the multi-focal lenses.

It has been fantastic. I had always been very near sighted, since about age 9, and now I have 20/20 vision. No more glasses! The quality of vision is so much better too. I had not known it, but my strong glasses had miniaturized and curved everything I was seeing, a little bit--but the improvement is very noticeable.

I went to a leading surgery center with physicians who do a lot of research in the area and have the latest, cutting edge technology. This was crucial immediately afterwards, as while the lenses were working perfectly, the astigmatism in my corneas had to be removed for the full beneficial effects to come through. My physicians were great at explaining it and working to make it right.

The cataract operations themselves were amazing. Very bright light is concentrated on your eye as the surgeon looks through a microscope. The eye is continually bathed in water. So, when the natural lens comes out and the artificial one goes in, it is an incredibly beautiful light show, with amazing colors and shapes. If what I saw could somehow have been filmed, it would qualify as one of the greatest visual images known to mankind.

Please private message me if you want more information.

[rachel]

Ditto everything Hot Ptah said. I've worked in Ophthalmology since the first generation multifocal lens was in its trial phase; the practice I was with was one of the principal investigators. I currently work at a practice where our chief surgeon trains other physicians in the technology and technique of multifocal refractive surgery.The most common problem that I have seen over the years with any new technology is when the patient has unrealistic expectations, that their vision will be "perfect" at distance, intermediate, and near, as well as poor patient selection by the physician. While some patients achieve "perfect vision", a lot do not because of pupil size, amount of astigmatism and the patient's personality in general. (One patient's "perfect vision" is another patient's "not acceptable" vision, depending on how they view the world in general)

Some lenses correct different focal lengths better than other lenses; some lenses will cause more halos and glare at night because of the size of the optics. I agree that it's imperative that you have your evaluation and surgery done by someone with years of experience who uses the latest wavefront technology. They will be able to assess which lens will be appropriate for your particular visual system, or be able to tell you if you would not be a good candidate, which is, in my opinion, the most important assessment of all.

BTW, Hot Ptah, we had a patient who was an artist a few years ago who painted what she "saw" while having cataract surgery. It was some of the most beautiful images/colors/patterns I have ever seen.

[Hot Ptah]

Ditto everything Hot Ptah said. I've worked in Ophthalmology since the first generation multifocal lens was in its trial phase; the practice I was with was one of the principal investigators. I currently work at a practice where our chief surgeon trains other physicians in the technology and technique of multifocal refractive surgery.The most common problem that I have seen over the years with any new technology is when the patient has unrealistic expectations, that their vision will be "perfect" at distance, intermediate, and near, as well as poor patient selection by the physician. While some patients achieve "perfect vision", a lot do not because of pupil size, amount of astigmatism and the patient's personality in general. (One patient's "perfect vision" is another patient's "not acceptable" vision, depending on how they view the world in general)

Some lenses correct different focal lengths better than other lenses; some lenses will cause more halos and glare at night because of the size of the optics. I agree that it's imperative that you have your evaluation and surgery done by someone with years of experience who uses the latest wavefront technology. They will be able to assess which lens will be appropriate for your particular visual system, or be able to tell you if you would not be a good candidate, which is, in my opinion, the most important assessment of all.

BTW, Hot Ptah, we had a patient who was an artist a few years ago who painted what she "saw" while having cataract surgery. It was some of the most beautiful images/colors/patterns I have ever seen.

Seriously, is there any chance that I could somehow view the artist's painting? Is it online anywhere? I would love to see that.

[rachel]

Don't I wish I knew where to find her. This happened almost 15 years ago at a different practice. I have no idea where she is now.

[Hot Ptah]

Don't I wish I knew where to find her. This happened almost 15 years ago at a different practice. I have no idea where she is now.

Oh well. It is interesting that someone else had a similar experience.

[Jim Alfredson]

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/331/7531/1511?ehom

[Hot Ptah]

Thanks for that, Jim. The first artist's image is closest to what I saw, although I saw much brighter colors, not pastels, and they were everchanging throughout the operation.

[skeith]

thanks Rachel and Hot Ptah for your helpful comments!

[7/4]

Thanks for that, Jim. The first artist's image is closest to what I saw, although I saw much brighter colors, not pastels, and they were everchanging throughout the operation.

My Mother was talking about the lights & colors too.