Lasik Surgery at Tucson Eye Care

Cataract evaluations are done on a referral basis. Patients with best-corrected visual acuity of 20/50 or worse, or significant glare symptoms with BAT of 20/50 or worse, are candidates for cataract surgery. During the examination specific attention is directed to:

Lid margin disease
Tear film disturbances
Astigmatism, regular or irregular
Corneal endothelial cell function
Anterior segment inflammation, active or old
Synechia
Iridodonesis or phacodonesis
Cataract type (increased risk of complications with posterior polar cataracts or PXE)
Vitreous clarity, presence or absence of PVD
Optic nerve, macular and peripheral retinal health

If patients are symptomatic and have visually significant cataracts, they will be counseled as follows:

A cataract is a clouding in the natural lens of the eye
It has the effect of clouding or blurring your vision or causing glare as if one is looking through a frosted glass or a dirty windshield
The only way vision can be improved is by removing the cloudy lens and replacing it with a clear lens
This is done with a cataract surgical operation
Fortunately, this is a good option with a greater than 99% success rate. Less than 1% of patients will have a problem or a complication. Infection, swelling, bleeding, inability to remove the entire cataract, inability to insert an intraocular lens, glaucoma, and retinal detachment collectively account for the 1% of patients who do not benefit from cataract surgery
In patients whose vision is limited by other eye disease such as glaucoma or macular degeneration, the amount of visual improvement provided by removing the cataract may be limited
Most patients choose an intraocular lens which gives them good distance vision. They may still need glasses to refine their distance vision and they will definitely need reading glasses
For those patients with 1D or greater of regular astigmatism, toric IOLs are an option. There is an increased cost for use of this premium lens. This should provide optimal distance correction, reading glasses will still be required
For patients wishing to decrease their dependence on glasses for distance and reading, our preferred option is blended monovision with the Crystalens. With this option, 80% of our patients can do most activities of daily living without glasses. They may still need them for night driving or reading fine print. Twenty percent of patients with Crystalens in both eyes will still need glasses at all times

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