post-surgery blurriness

Dear Doctors,

I have had two lens implants:
On 5/4/11 an acrysofIQ 19.5 D in the right eye for distance, with which I am very well pleased.

On 7/18/11 an acrysofIQ 22.0 D was implanted in the left eye to provide near vision for reading. Although the left eye used to be the dominant eye, now my vision in it is clear only from about 6 inches from the eyes to about 18 inches from the eyes - a distance of only about 12 - 14 inches of clear vision. Beyond that everything is blurry, and things across the room actually look sharper if I close the left eye.

Although the surgeon said that with a "reading lens" there would be blurriness, he didn't explain how little clear vision there would be in the left eye. It leaves a feeling of imbalance and of having a thin film covering the eye, only slightly better than it was before the surgery. Is this minimal clear vision normal with a "reading" lens and is there a possibility that the left eye will get better, or should I consider an IOL exchange while the surgery is new?

Several friends have told me that their vision worsened over time after having cataract surgery and it worries me that there is so little clear vision in the left eye now if it is likely to get even worse over time. I believe the doctor is a good surgeon but feel that he should have communicated better. I plan to call him but would appreciate any answers you can give to my questions and any advice you can give me before I call.

Thank you for the service you provide with this web site.

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

It is much too early to draw any conclusions about the final result on the LE. The fact that you can see clearly at any distance is a good indication that there is not a major problem such as infection, bleeding or swelling of the retina.

Discuss with your surgeon. Even if nothing changed the near point could be moved out by touch up lasik.

JCH MD