New Lenses
I have been reading listservs about cataract surgery, and it seems that there are many new lens implants that are coming down the pike! I’m sure that some of these will turn out to be more useful than others, but it is nice to have so much research and development going into improving vision for our patients.
I just had my left eye cataract replaced with an IOL – had a choice of regular/spherical lens or the newer ones that can correct for astigmatism (“toric”?) – decided to go with the regular sphericals – will still need correction for reading (and astigmatism). My decision to go with a “spherical” was based in part on the necessity of placement of the lens accurately and worried that the position could change ever so slightly and losing the ability of the lens to correct. I recall that the degree of astigmatism as determined by refraction were not quite constant – they seemed to vary ever so slightly – so my question is – How accurate do the placements have to be and how good are the toric lenses? I am OK with my choice – but curious of the materials technology and placement issues during surgery. The first few hours after surgery were not pleasant (not pain, but having a patch!!) – but not bad really. Astonishing the change after the first replacement.
I noticed today (second day after) hints of a “shadow” – as if I can see something at the corner of my eye – but it is NOT constant – comes/goes – wonder if that will change (some of the threads indicate it may, or may not!)
Toric lenses are very commonly placed. They do have to be placed quite accurately, but accurate placement by ophthalmic surgeons is the norm. We see the benefit to patients from toric IOLs every week, and I highly advocate their use in the appropriate patients. The target placement location of a toric IOL is not determined by the subjective refraction at all in my practice; it is determined by the objective measurements taken of the eye prior to surgery.