Cataracts affect most people as they age, turning the natural crystalline lens inside the eye into a dense, cloudy disk. A clouded lens causes blurry vision, double vision, reduced contrast, and other vision impairments. The only treatment for a cataract is to remove the natural lens and replace it with an artificial lens implant called an intraocular lens (IOL). These IOLs can correct myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism, and presbyopia (age-related blurry near vision).
Our state-of-the-art facility at Laser Eye Center™ stays abreast of emerging technologies in ophthalmology because we believe staying at the top of our field is crucial to providing excellent visual outcomes with cataract surgery. Our ophthalmologists use advanced technologies and have a 30-year history of proven success with more than 500,000 procedures.
New IOL Options for Better Vision After Cataract Surgery
New IOL technologies build upon existing models to increase spectacle independence, or visual freedom. Enhanced monofocal lenses bring a new level of presbyopia correction without some of the issues associated with other IOLs.
Johnson & Johnson Vision recently launched Tecnis PureSee extended depth-of-field (EDOF) in Korea, offering vision correction to a broader patient pool. Tecnis PureSee makes it possible for traditional cataract surgery to be a refractive cataract procedure because the IOL improves visual performance without sacrificing the quality of vision, such as glare or halos around lights. This multifocal lens improves distance and near vision with fewer visual disturbances than monofocal lenses and previous generations of multifocal IOLs.
PanOptix™ Trifocal IOL by Clareon® is another advanced lens implant that corrects presbyopia for spectacle independence. The trifocal IOL created a new focal point in the lens implant to account for age-related blurry near vision in the intermediate vision range so patients can enjoy 20/20 eyesight at all distances. The advanced Clareon® material is biocompatible and is made with hydrophobic acrylic and hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA). Laser Eye Center™ proudly offers PanOptix™ at our premier clinic.
The Light Adjustable Lens (LAL) by RxSight is a newer IOL option that enables patients to trial and customize their vision after cataract surgery, taking customized IOL powers to the next level. LAL uses a photosensitive material that adjusts lens power when it is exposed to UV light. This revolutionary lens technology requires two to four light treatments, each lasting about 90 seconds and spaced three days apart. Patients must wear UV-protective glasses during waking hours until the lens is permanently set (24 hours after the last treatment).
An FDA study involving 600 subjects found patients with LAL were twice as likely as those with a standard monofocal lens implant to reach 20/20 vision without corrective eyewear. LAL is especially beneficial for patients with a history of laser vision correction or challenges with pre-op calculations.
The Light Adjustable Lens tailors visual outcomes to each patient, like a tailor would take in or let out a dress before a wedding. Patients feel more comfortable and less anxious about their vision after cataract surgery with LAL because they know they have additional appointments to tweak their results.
Artificial Intelligence in Cataract Surgery
Artificial intelligence (AI) performs tasks normally done by humans and learns and adapts in many ways to recognize images and processes, sort data points, and more. AI can be beneficial in screening cataract surgery patients using ophthalmic images, such as slit-lamp photos, and automates the IOL selection process to find the best IOL for that specific patient.
The use of AI is not new in ophthalmology; it dates back to 1976 when the CASNET-based glaucoma consultation program utilized machine-learning AI in clinical practice for glaucoma patients. AI has great potential to help patients with many eye conditions and diseases and may help LASIK patients who need cataract surgery later in life.
AI-Driven IOL Calculator
In 2023, the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) incorporated an AI-driven tool with a predictive formula to calculate IOL powers. Deep learning AI models can provide solid predictions for the ideal axial lens position after cataract surgery, reducing inaccuracies from pre-operative measurements and human input error from entering numbers several times in a computer.
The ESCRS IOL calculator scrapes the Internet the way travel websites like Expedia do to display several flight options at once. Eye surgeons enter data just once, and the AI-driven technology compares the data points to seven modern online formulas and their outputs for IOL power prediction. Research shows predictive IOL power technology can reduce post-operative refractive errors from .5 D to as little as .24 D from the expected visual outcome. Many refractive surgeons around the world have adopted the use of this convenient system through ESCRS.
ESCRS hopes to develop and release other calculators soon, including a post-refractive surgery tool. The organization has already released a toric version for patients needing astigmatism correction with IOLs. These AI formulas and tools improve IOL power calculation for better visual acuity. The ESCRS IOL calculator can improve the lives of cataract surgery patients, freeing them from the constraints of prescription eyeglasses and reading glasses.
Laser Eye Center™ closely follows technological advancements in ophthalmology, learning about new devices and programs as they become available so we can offer our patients the best vision and eye health possible.
To learn more about your IOL options, schedule a cataract surgery consultation at our Los Angeles, California, office. Contact Laser Eye Center™ at (800) 805-2737.
SOURCES:
- https://europe.ophthalmologytimes.com/view/next-gen-lasers-and-iols-for-every-patient-the-year-ahead-in-cornea
- https://europe.ophthalmologytimes.com/view/in-2024-data-driven-tools-will-shape-cataract-and-refractive-surgery
- https://www.escrs.org/eurotimes-articles/ai-could-reduce-refractive-surprises/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9240552/
- https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/triad/news/2024/01/17/new-technology-for-eye-surgery-#
- https://www.clevelandeyeclinic.com/cataracts-ohio/the-light-adjustable-lens-lal/
- https://www.koreabiomed.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=22605
- https://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/ai-helps-bring-clarity-to-lasik-patients-facing-cataract-surgery-567672/
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