issues relating to monocular vision after cataract surgery

[dorisb]

I will have cataract surgery in Dec and Jan.  My surgeon wants to give me fixed focus IOLs for distance only in both eyes because I have too much astigmatism for any multifocus lens.  During my cataract surgery, he will also correct my astigmatism with AK.  
My surgeon recommends against monocular vision because of depth perception issues.  However, for many years, I very successfully had a distance contact lens in my dominant (right) eye and a reading contact lens in my left eye.  
I want to request that a

[SWK]

My wife had cataract surgery with zoom-lens planted on or around 7-20-06. from the time she left she noticed that one of her eyes had blurred vision and a foggy tent. the 9th of this month she had the lens replaced, and although I know it's only been a few days, she is having the same exact problem as before. The halo's are so bad she can't drive at night and here vision is so blurred she can't see anything out of that eye fromm about 1' away. She says she can see perfect for the first foot but it is still real hazy. Before surgery she could see fine just needed reading glasses, the only reason she had surgery was so she would not have to wear glasses. Only found out about cataracts during office visit. Any advise you might have would be a help.

[hud]

Tecnis CL is an enhanced version of the silicone aspheric monofocal Tecnis. The old style haptics were more difficult for doctors to use, so they changed to the shorter, more traditional PMMA haptics that are easier to visualize. They also implemented the AMO Opti-edge feature on this lens that was originally developed by Pharmacia. The purpose is reduce "secondary cataracts" by stopping the migration of residual cells on the capsule, requiring a "yag" laser treatment.

[JodieJ]

So what's the scoop on the new, soon-to-be-available Tecnis CL?

[eyecu]

Nothing has beat or surpassed the Tecnis lens which has the most valid and published studies to date. I will be anxious to see comparisons. In a recent study by Franchini,which compared four models, Tecnis, IQ, B&L and Staar using a ray tracing program and eye model, the Tecnis demonstrated the best results in depth of focus and overall was most balanced. According to Franchini, the Tecnis IOL remains unsurpassed and the gold standard IOL when compared with its aspherical counterparts.

[JodieJ]

Monovision would absolutely be my first choice correction if I could still do it.  I had a very hard time adjusting to it during the first week, and I would have given up if my optometrist hadn't urged me to try a little longer.  But having good vision at all distances (without halos, glare or concerns about lighting) makes it a great option for those who can tolerate it.  (For what it's worth, did you know that former President Reagan was a big monovision fan?)

I hope your outcome is all you hope for.  Best of luck!

[dorisb]

Hud,

Your response was very helpful and answered my question.  I didn't realize "SN60" referred to a family of IOLs.  So, my surgeon was just using shorthand when he referred to the IOL he uses as the "SN60" (his technician later referred to it as the SN60WF).

Do you agree with Jodie that the SN60WF is the code for the Acrysof IQ?  

BTW, one of the reasons for my confusion was based on a Sept 12, 2006 report at the XXIV Congress of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons that made six references to the Alcon AcrysofIQ, three references to the SN60, and one reference to the SN60WF, as if they were all different.  Following is the link to that report:  http://www.escrs.org/EVENTS/06LONDON/
sessiondetails.asp?id=512&category=Free&sessiondate=12/09/2006