Cataract surgery can change your life. Not only can it give you your vision back by removing your cataracts, but it can also help you see better than ever.
When you get cataract surgery, your natural lens will be removed and replaced with an intraocular lens, or IOL. Some IOLs, which fall under the premium lens category, can enhance your vision and reduce or even eliminate your dependence on other visual aids!
One of the most exciting and newest premium lenses is the Light Adjustable Lens (LAL). The Light Adjustable Lens can provide fully customized vision, ensuring incredible sight after cataract surgery.
Keep reading to learn more about premium IOLs and why achieving custom vision is as easy as choosing the Light Adjustable Lens!
What are Premium IOLs?
When you have cataract surgery, the procedure involves removing the full natural lens. Doing this also removes the cataract that’s formed on it.
After removing the natural lens, it’s replaced with an intraocular lens (IOL). IOLs are the only way you can see clearly after cataract surgery.
Standard IOLs are called monofocal lenses. If you choose monofocal IOLs, you’ll still need glasses to see.
These IOLs only correct vision at one focal point, meaning you’ll need to wear visual aids if you want to see at other uncorrected distances. Premium IOLs, however, can correct your vision to a higher degree and give you a more comprehensive range of vision.
While they have an out-of-pocket expense, many patients find the enhanced vision premium IOLs offer is well worth the cost. If you want to get your money’s worth, the Light Adjustable Lens is an excellent premium IOL option that can give you even better vision than most other premium IOLs!
No other premium IOL can provide patients with customized vision.
What is the Light Adjustable Lens?
The Light Adjustable Lens is the only IOL you can customize after cataract surgery. This is because you’ll have the Light Adjustable Lens adjusted after cataract surgery.
Many patients find that their vision can change slightly after having cataract surgery. When you choose other kinds of IOLs, your cataract surgeon has to make an educated guess based on your current vision.
This guess is usually accurate and allows you to see more clearly than before. However, the customized vision from the Light Adjustable Lens can help you see much more clearly for better and longer-lasting vision.
How the Light Adjustable Lens Works
The Light Adjustable Lens is made from a material that changes shape when exposed to UV light. During cataract surgery, you’ll have the Light Adjustable Lens implanted in your eye.
After you’ve healed, you’ll receive light treatments from a Light Delivery Device (LDD). Using the Light Delivery Device allows your ophthalmologist to adjust the lens to correct your vision to your specifications.
You’ll get to see previews of what your vision will be like before you begin these treatments. The Light Adjustable Lens is adjusted over multiple sessions, allowing you to “test drive” your vision after each adjustment.
This way, your eye doctor at Sweeney Eye Associates can fine-tune the lens to your vision to help you see the absolute best you can! Most patients only need about three light treatments before achieving their optimal vision.
What To Expect When You Get the Light Adjustable Lens
If you choose the Light Adjustable Lens, you’ll be required to wear UV protective glasses at all times after cataract surgery. You’ll need to wear these glasses except if you’re washing your face, sleeping, or showering.
You must wear the glasses at all other times to ensure your Light Adjustable Lens does not change shape. Wearing your glasses as directed ensures you’ll have your desired visual outcomes after undergoing light treatments at Sweeney Eye Associates.
You can have your first adjustment two to three weeks after having cataract surgery, and recovery is complete. Your eye doctor will use a Light Delivery Device to adjust your lens.
This is done by simply shining a special light over your eye and is completely non-invasive. The Light Adjustable Lens will be adjusted over multiple sessions spaced three days apart. You will continue to need to wear your UV protective glasses between adjustments.
Depending on how well your vision works when “test driving” between sessions, you may have anywhere from one to three adjustment sessions. Once you and your eye doctor are satisfied with your vision, the final shape of the Light Adjustable Lens is locked in across two treatment sessions.
These treatments are given two days apart. After the second one, you no longer have to wear protective glasses. At this point, UV light will no longer change the shape of the lens.
Once your vision is fully locked in, you’ll be able to see like never before. The Light Adjustable Lens can correct your vision to an astounding degree, allowing many patients to see better than they could before they even developed cataracts!
Your vision will be crisper and clearer, letting you see the world with a new degree of clarity.
Who is a Good Candidate for the Light Adjustable Lens?
Does the Light Adjustable Lens sound appealing to you? Then, you could be a great candidate!
Most cataract surgery patients make good candidates for the Light Adjustable Lens. You need to be willing to wear protective glasses at all times while healing from cataract surgery and between adjustment sessions. Potential candidates for the Light Adjustable Lens need to have healthy eyes.
The Light Adjustable Lens is also a premium IOL, meaning insurance will not cover the cost. Talk to your eye doctor about the Light Adjustable Lens during your cataract surgery consultation. They can help you decide if it’s the right option for you.
Find out more about the Light Adjustable Lens by requesting an appointment at Sweeney Eye Associates in Richardson, TX, now! Aren’t you ready for custom vision made for you?
