Lens Material

During cataract surgery, I remove the natural lens of the eye and replace it with a lens implant. The lens implants I use are mostly made of acrylic, but not all of them are the same. Recently, I expressed my preferences to one of my operating rooms that I would like to use Brand A lenses for regular cataract surgery and Brand B lenses for astigmatism correcting cataract surgery. This is the ideal situation for me, as I think that Brand A is better for “standard lenses” but Brand B is better for astigmatism correction. Impressively, that OR is able to provide those preferences. However, in my other operating room, I am not allowed to do that, because the companies behind Brand A and Brand B will only allow us to stock one brand of lenses in the operating room for our “standard” supply. That means you have to choose either all Brand A or all Brand B. This is the case in many operating rooms around the country, as I have experienced this several times. Sometimes, I think it is interesting for you, the patients and general public, to learn about the ins and outs of what constrains our decision making because you probably would never have realized!