By Ronald J. Hessler, M.D.
For many of us, clear vision is not possible without eyeglass correction, and proper eyewear is important to enjoy vision to its fullest.
While glasses or contacts can be immensely helpful to render clear vision, sometimes your eye exam will reveal other conditions which can impact eyesight. Cataract, or opacity of the lens inside the eye, can keep properly focused light from fully reaching the retina. Occasionally occurring in children or younger adults for genetic or medication reasons, this lens opacification affects most of us to some degree in later life.
Age-related cataracts affect more than 22 million Americans. Fortunately, cataract removal surgery can restore vision by removing the hazy lens and replacing it with a clear intraocular lens (IOL) implant.
IOL implants are prescription lenses that are specifically chosen for your eye’s degree of near-sightedness or far-sightedness, often reducing your need for glasses to see in the distance, and, for some, resulting in only the need for inexpensive reading glasses. Additionally, IOL implant technology has advanced to allow premium lenses to neutralize astigmatism (irregular focusing of light into the eye) and multifocal IOL implants now can yield clear vision at distance and for reading at near.
A question I’ve often been asked is “Can cataract surgery be done with laser?” Until recently, the answer was no. Popular in recent years is laser refractive surgery, known by names such as LASIK and PRK. This technology reshapes the cornea, the clear domed windshield on the surface of the eye, to better focus light through the lens inside the eye and onto the retina, eliminating or reducing the need for glasses.
While a viable solution for many, this treatment will not correct eyes with cataracts, since the focused light still passes through the hazy cataract lens inside the eye. Your cataract surgeon must enter the eye through the cornea to access, then fragment and remove the cataract using ultrasound energy before placing the IOL implant.
Modern cataract surgery allows the incisions to be tiny (only slightly larger than the diameter of a toothpick), resulting in speedy recovery and discharge home after a procedure lasting only about 20 minutes.
Until now, the surgeon has had to create the corneal and lens access incisions manually, using blades and instruments. While a practiced surgeon can accomplish this with great skill, new laser technology has been developed to allow even greater precision in creating all of the incisions required in cataract surgery.
The laser treatment, called femtosecond laser surgery, is performed at the beginning of the procedure, is painless and only lasts about 30 seconds. It enables more efficient cataract removal, requiring less energy and less stress to the eye. It also results in faster recovery and getting you back to enjoying life with the best eyesight possible. So now, when asked if I can perform cataract surgery with a laser, I say “Yes!”
If new glasses alone aren’t enough to correct your vision, ask your eye care provider if you have cataracts and if you are a good candidate for femtosecond laser surgery.
Dr. Ronald J. Hessler is an ophthalmologist who sees patients in the Eye Care Center at Mayo Clinic Health System in Menomonie.