Using contact over Crystalens implant

Hi. Seveeral weeks ago, as I was going through the surgical procedures of having cataracts removed and multifocal lens implanted, I was here with many questions and appreciate all your helpful thoughts and suggestions.

I went back for a checkup with my surgeon yesterday (8 weeks post-surgery on the left eye) and am still experiencing priblems with the left (dominant) eye and the Crystalens distance. What I have is a ReStor in the right eye for distance and very close reading. The Crystalens in the left eye was supposed to give me good distance, intermediate, and fair near vision. It didn't work that way though, as I ended up with good close vision, very good intermediate, and very poor distance. What has really disturbed me with the distance problem is how it feels when I walk into a large room (like a supermarket, or even my art studio). Immediately, I feel the left eye "forcing" its blurriness into my awareness. It feels like someone put a greasy coating on my eye glasses (which I' not wearing). Any time I try to focus in the distance...from about 6 feet on out...the left eye's blurriness just seems to dominate my vision.

Anyway, yesterday my surgeon suggesting using a -.75 contact lens in the left eye to see how much it improved distance and to see if the accommodating feature of the Crystalens would adjust to giving me good intermediate and near vision. I go back to him tomorrow to evaluate and to decide about exchanging the Crystalens for a different power (one that would equate to what I have now with the contact lens). Time is running out on deciding about doing the exchange. The result of the contact lens is a great improvement. I don't feel like my eyes are seeing separately any more when I focus on distance objects. I have lost some intermediate and near, but it's not really bad and my left eye is helping out a lot.

My surgeon is probably going to suggest, as a result of this "test", that we go ahead with the exhange. My question is...would it be better to just use the contact from now on, or to go ahead with the exchange. He wants what is best for me and is willing to do whatever he can to give me my best vision. I would also figure that if we go ahead with the exchange, it will probably take some time for the intermediate and near vision to optimize.

My other question is...do you think over a long period of time (several months) that strange feeling of my eyes seeing "separately" for distance focusing would be lessened by the brain's adjustments (in the event I didn't do an exchange or wear a contact)?  I hope I haven't muddled my questions up too much. And thanks so very much for your time.

jefields

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Doing lasik on the left eye to correct the residual -0.75 would generally be safer than and IOL exchange. I would discuss that option with the surgeon.

JCH III MD

[jefields]

Thank you. I didn't even realize that lasik could do that, since I'm not familiar with lasik. Hopefully, my doctor is and I'll ask him about that tomorrow. And hopefully, correcting the refraction with lasik wouldn't afffect the ability of the Crystalens to accommodate.

Thanks again,
jefields

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Good luck to you. Happy to help.

JCH III MD

[Eye-Kant-C]

Since the Crystalenses don't really accomodate fully, as the manufacturer promises, I think you get a "range" of vision, not really a "full range" of vision. So, you either get close or distance. If you use lasik or a contact to correct your distance, you lose the closeup range. I would think a contact would be a better option for the immediate future because the Crystalens range can change for up to (and possibly) over a year. Mine didn't change much at all for the first 3 months, then around 4 months, the distance improved from 20/80 to 20/50 and I lost some closeup in that eye. Once you do any surgery (lasik) it can't be undone. Just my opinion, but I'd wait a while and live with the contact for now.

I'm trying to get my doctors to order a pair of contacts to "un-correct" my distance -- leave me slightly nearsighted, so that I can get back some of my closeup range. I spend a lot more of my life struggling to see closeup and now I'm 20/20 or better for distance. I feel that sacrificing a little distance would be worth doing away with the reading glasses, which I now need for EVERYTHING. (Before surgery I only needed them to actually read a book, etc.!!!) Crystalenses certainly are not all they're cracked up to be!

Good luck with your decision.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

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