Halo and double vision after Restor Lens procedure

[Glaza]

Hello, I am writing about my uncle, who is a 65 year old male in New York City. He had cataracts on both eyes and astigmatism (+2D). A month ago he had a procedure done on his best eye and Restore Lens was put in. As a result, he developed a strong double vision and a very severe halo effect (especially to traffic lights). He now requires glasses to see up close and far away. He is extremely upset and I'm trying to find out what can be done to fix this situation.

He went to several doctors that offered differing opinions. It seems like he has 2 options:

1) Remove the Restor Lens. Put in a standard lens instead.

2) Put in Restor Lens into the second eye as well and then after 2-3 months do Lasik surgery to improve his vision and astigmatism.

Both options carry risks. Which option do you recommend as the less risky one and why? Would it be possible to get rid of the halo effect and the astigmatism? If you had had similar experiences, please share them. I will be forever grateful!

Thank you in advance for your feedback!

[JodieJ]

Actually, that info was posted on this website by a forum doc.  Maybe it varies case by case.

[Glaza]

Oh really? I was under impression that removing the ReStor is more risky than the initial surgery simply because it's always more risky to have a secondary surgery and it's hard to predict how the eye would react being messed with for the second time.

[JodieJ]

LASIK will not alleviate the halo problem.  For some people, the halos do diminish over time; for others, they are permanent.

I've read that explanting and replacing the ReStor is about as risky as having cataract surgery.  Considering what it will do for your uncle's quality of life, the benefits might far outweigh the risks.

[Glaza]

Thank you very much for your responses. If everything would be corrected with glasses, he would not consider additional procedures. His biggest problem right not is the halo effect. He says it's extremely severe and makes him feel very uncomfortable. Unfortunately, wearing glasses does not get rid of this problem.

Would LASIK alleviate the halo problem at all? Or all it would do is correct nearsightedness and astigmatism?

I am worried that removing the ReStor lens is very risky and that at least LASIK is more on the surface of the eye, whereas the removal of the lens is more invasive.

Is removal of the ReStor (to be replaced with a monofocal IOL) a common procedure?

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

Both courses of action involve risk as does doing nothing. The safest course of action is to wear glasses all the time if that corrects the problem.

Most patients (and there are many) on this website that have similiar problems have opted for removel of the multifocal IOL and insertion of a high quality aspheric monofocial IOL.

JCH MD

[JodieJ]

Since your uncle is very unhappy with his first ReStor, getting a second ReStor doesn't make much sense.  Is his vision satisfactory with glasses?  If it isn't, it might not be any better after LASIK.

If your uncle chooses the first option, he should select a surgeon who has a lot of experience explanting IOLs.