Restor Monofocal or Multifocal?

[sri009]

I am a 32 yr old male having cataracts for the past 15 days in both the eyes. I developed cataracts as I was on prednisone for almost an year. I was on prednisone since I suffer from ulcerative colitis (I am surprised that no doctor ever told me that I could get cataract as a prednisone side effect!). I am diabetic as well.

My ophthalmologist says that he would use Acrysof Restor monofocal or multifocal lens which can filter out UV as well as blue light. He has left the choice of monofocal or multifocal to me. Can anyone please suggest me which one to go for. All your inputs will be very valuable for me. I have scheduled my surgery on 28th sep.

Thanks in advance.
Sri

[sri009]

I just called my doc and told him that I would go with monofocals. He said he would be using Acrysof IQ. He said it is acrylic. The doc never mentioned of me having astigmatism, so I belive that I dont have it.

[JodieJ]

There are several good aspheric monofocal IOLs, and probably no "best" one.  I'd suggest that you find a good surgeon, and let him/her choose the lens.  Some (but certainly not all) retinal specialists suggest that patients with diabetes get acrylic (rather than silicone) lenses.  If you have significant astigmatism, the AcrySof toric IOL might be a good choice.  If your dominant eye were set for distance vision and your non-dominant eye for intermediate vision, with a little luck you would only need glasses for prolonged reading or seeing small print.

[sri009]

Dear Restornomore,Ray T Oyakawa, MD, JodieJ.

Thank you all so much for your feedback. Somewhere in the back of my mind I kept telling myself that there are no complaints about monofocals and the only drawback with monofocals is that I need to wear glasses to read (please correct me if I need different pairs of glasses for other activities). I would rather be okay with using glasses once in a while than having to deal with the ugly side effects of multifocals.

My surgeon did explain me the difference between mono and multi-focals and he said the side effects were only seen by a very small percentage of patients and the halos and glares would go away with time. All through he kind of seemed to be pro multifocals. It is so disheartening, we trust our life with the doctors and most of the doctors only see how best they can make money with our lives, even at the cost of our lives!

I have decided to go with monofocals. Could anyone of you please suggest which is the best monofocals out there in the market?

Thanks,
Sri

[JodieJ]

I vote for (acrylic) aspheric monofocal IOLs set for mini-monovision.  It wouldn't be a bad idea to get another opinion from an experienced cataract surgeon.  And please do more research before proceeding.  Your upcoming surgery is not an emergency and can be postponed.

[Ray T Oyakawa, MD]

I would only put in a monofocal or an accommodating IOL in your eyes.  I have a 35 year old prolidferative diabetic patient in whom I implanted bilateral Crystalens and he has done very well.  No glasses.

Dr. O. O.

[Restornomore]

Dear Sri,

I am a 51 year old cataract patient in otherwise excellent health who had two Restor lenses put in in the last 4 months - the worst decision I have ever made.  I had one out a couple of days ago.  Therefore, though this is only my personal opinion I am in a good position to answer you as I have a multifocal in one eye and a mono in the other.

Even after 3 days with the eye still traumatised from surgery I love the quality of my monofocal vision.  It is beautiful and clear, especially at night, and so much more like my pre-cataract natural vision than the awful Restor.  With that I had terrible vision, with "ghost images" and contrasting colours that smudged and blurred into one another like a poorly adjusted television set - and this was supposed to be a "successful" operation.  I nearly went mad with the unnatural effects and became very depressed and miserable.  

I can't imagine why your surgeon would even consider a multifocal with your diabetes, which can lead to serious eye problems later on.  You don't want the quality of your vision cut down at all, and that is exactly what multifocal lenses do.  The big sales pitch is that you get a deeper range of vision, but in my experience that is a complete con - you mostly still need glasses with the multifocals, and the side effects can be dreadful.  Various methods can be used with the monofocal lenses to give you more depth of field without compromising on the clarity and acuity of your vision.

Please click on my username to see my posts about the Restor lens.  Also use the search function on this site with words such as "restor". "multifocal", "halos", "ghosting" to see the many problems others have had with various brands of the so-called "premium" lenses, which include all of the multifocals and the crystalens.

Don't be rushed into surgery that will effect you for the **rest** of your young life!  Perhaps you should get one or more extra opinions as it does not seem that you have had all the alternatives explained to you.  Many reputable surgeons in my home city of Sydney will not use the multifocals at all !  Often there are undisclosed commercial interests behind the pushing of them.  

Personally I would absolutely **beg** anyone not to have multifocals given my own terrible experience with them, and favourable though brief experience with the monos.

I do hope this helps you.  Please don't be afraid to back out or defer surgery until you feel 100% happy that you understand exactly what the pros and cons are.  "Mini" or "modified" monovision is often used in monofocal surgery, and many patients are very satisfied with the results - your surgeon should be able to explain to you how this works.  
I am due to have the second Restor replaced on the 28th of September and face considerable risk and heartache - don't let this happen to you!

Regards, Restornomore

[sri009]

My surgery is scheduled on the 21st of sep. I typed 28th by mistake.