replacement lens

[Pat311]

I am going to have cataract surgery done next month.  My doctor suggests that I have Restor lens.  I would like to know which lens I should go with, the Medicare trditional lens or the new multifocal lens?

[Michael J Kutryb, MD]

Pat, that is a very good question and it's a decision that I cannot make for you.  In general, multifocal lenses like the restor can give you some more freedom from glasses for reading than traditional implants.  The downside is that the multifocal lens will divide up the light rays so that only certain rays are focused for near and some for distance and the brain learns to constantly pay attention to some rays and ignore others.  As you can imagine there might be some degree of degradation of contrast sensitivity and possibly some issues in dim lighting and driving at night.  Also you cannot "try out" these type of lenses so it is hard to actually give you a real simulation of what you might experience. In the end, I personally, am not a big fan of mutifocal lenses but I do see a legitimate place for the crystalens implant which is an accommodating type of lens with no multifocal zones or rings.  The near power is typically less than most multifocal lenses and sometimes the lens can be a bit off target, requiring a possible laser touch up,  but serious visual side effects are generally less.  You have to do your research and decide which lens is best for you.  If you don't mind wearing reading glasses sometimes, than a traditional monofocal lens is always a no-brainer good idea.  Don't hesitate to use the search feature on this site with key words, restor, rezoom, crystalens.

MJK MD

[londonbridge]

I had a Restor lens placed in one eye and wound up having it explanted and replaced with a monofocal toric IOL set for mid distance. Currently I wear a contact for distance in my dominant eye but when I have the cataract removed from it, I will select another monofocal lens set for distance. This combination is a type of blended monovision and I function well with reading glasses that have a correction for a slight astigmatism. The quality of the vision is much much better than with the restor. If quality is important to you and you wish to have less potential problems and don't mind wearing glasses for some tasks, then go with the monofocals.(Most people with multifocals still require glasses for some tasks any way) They are tried and true for over 40 years. Be sure to have a highly competent and compassionate surgeon who will explore all of your options with you as well.
Good luck.
londonbridge.

[Lucia12]

Would like to hear from anyone who is/has been diagnosed with PVD after cataract surgery.  I have strands of floaters that almost change daily and are most annoying during the day.  Saw my doctor,  was told it will take some time for them to settle but nothing to be done at this time.  At this point I wish I never had the surgery.  My eye health did check out good so this is a plus;  just wonder how others cope with this problem.

[disappointed66]

by disappointed

I had a reStor lens placed im my left eye July.  It is totally unacceptable.  I want it explanted.  Plese let me hear from you regarding this.  I will ot have the right eye done.
Was the new lens implanted the same time they took out the restore

Have a doctors appointment today.  Have no idea how ihe is going to take this news.

I am new to this forum and really do not know how it works so I might have sent more than one message.  I don't mean to be a pest.

Thanks

66 year old active senior

[caren123]

I had problems with a crystalens being off target and need further surgery,  If I had todo it over again i would get traditional lenses. I think you can get each eye set a bit differently to get the range of vision you want, i.e. you don't have to get both set for distance. If you do opt fot multifocal lens implants, it seems that the best results are had when you do your research first to find a surgeon who has had a good deal of experience with that particular implant..

[sally987]

Hey there, Dr. Kutryb,

I have a couple of questions.

Would having one toric iol and one standard aspheric iol be a compatible combination?  I don't mind wearing glasses.

What would be the visual indications of an overcorrected toric iol?

Thank you so much~