In my practice we are very focused on the latest technologies and techniques in cataract surgery and the last few years have certainly brought the most significant changes in what we have to offer patients because of the new, “Premium” lenses that Ophthalmologists now have in their arsenal. Recently there has been some news on this front I’d like to share. I have long been an advocate of Crystalens®, the only FDA approved accommodating or “focusing” implant for cataract surgery available in the United States. I was the first in the area to offer this lens and my practice is a “Crystalens® Center of Excellence. I also lecture extensively to other doctors on how to achieve success with this lens via improved patient selection and surgical technique. The newest version of Crystalens is the Crystalens AO and we have enthusiastically adopted this in my practice. The AO utilizes the same accommodating technology as the previous Crystalens® however, the optic is now an aspheric to provide improved quality of vision at all ranges. We have been very encouraged by our patient’s levels of satisfaction with the improved optics and performance of this lens and we are finding that it provides better outcomes for patients who choose this technology.

Another method of providing a full range of vision is through the use of multifocality. Whereas Crystalens® changes shape in the eye to allow an expanded range of vision the multifocals use diffractive optic technology to split light into distance and near focal points that allow excellent distance and near vision. We’ve had the Acrysof Restor® available to us for about 4 years and we’ve seen some improvements and refinements over that time in this lens’ optics and design. The newest version has been very well received by the hundreds of patients we’ve put this lens in, providing high quality distance and near vision without glasses. Another diffractive mutifocal implant we use is the Tecnis® Multifocal by Abbott Medical Optics which offers the best reading vision without spectacle correction in all lighting situations of any implant that I’ve had the opportunity to work with. This is an excellent choice as well for the right patient.

For patients who have cataracts and significant astigmatism we continue to use the Acrysof® Toric implant. This lens has astigmatism correction built into it to compensate for astigmatism on the cornea and it allows us to fix both the cataract problem and the patient’s astigmatism with one procedure and has been a very powerful tool in my arsenal for the last 5 years, having helped thousands of patients to see better without glasses. This lens was recently made available in a higher range of powers to correct even higher levels of astigmatism.

We now have many options to help patients achieve their goals with cataract surgery. Sometimes we mix and match using one implant in one eye and a different one in the other for a “blend” of function in the two eyes. We have also removed implants placed previously by other surgeons and replaced them with “newer” technology lenses when appropriate. If you are considering cataract surgery make sure you are familiar with the latest technology available and seek a surgeon with experience and expertise with all of these implants so he can help you make the right choice for you, your needs and your lifestyle.

Steven G. Safran, MD, PA