EYES: Three Eternal Themes (2)

Published: 2022-11-20

As we carry on discussing the luxurious bouquets of glaucoma and cataracts, Symphony lenses are preparing the world's population for clear vision.

EYES: Three Eternal Themes (2)

EYES: Three Eternal Themes (2)

So medicine can rob the eye of this necessary fluid?

The eyes maintain their strength by maintaining a certain level of pressure. The ciliary body acts like a pump, moving nourishing moisture from the blood vessels in the internal parts of the eye, after which it returns to the bloodstream.

So we have to practice moderation?

We need a way to ensure that this liquid provides irrigation, but can also drain. This is difficult because it’s a constant struggle with the pressure being too high or too low. Recently, a device called the iStint was developed, which is a titanium shunt that resembles an underwater pipe. It connects the eye’s drains to its anterior chambers.

If I had both glaucoma and cataracts, am I doomed to two operations instead of one?

Everything is done as usual for the removal of the cataracts, but this adds only 1-2 minutes to the operation, and without any post-op complications. This microshunt creates an internal valve, as opposed to the exterior one made during typical cataract surgery, which creates a large flap that poorly regulates the pressure.

And this fancy microshunt is safe?

Safety depends not just on the device, but also the hands that install it. In the right hands, this microshunt is safe and incredibly useful.

CATARACTS

The new Symfony lenses have created quite a stir. You were the first in our city to start using Restore – a revolutionary lens at the time. And now you’re the first with another product. Remind us what Symfony is about.

The typical multifocal lenses work well for things far away and up-close, but are lame in middle distances. Plus, there are problems with haloes, reflections, glare, a loss of contrast, and even a partial loss of light. They usually lose about 20% of light, but in the case of astigmatism correction, results heavily depend on the corneal procedures. Symfony resolves all these problems. It’s a phenomenal invention – a complex diffractive lens with precise resolution!

This operation differs from previous ones?

I’ll never get tired of saying that it’s not just the device. Theoretically, you can buy just about any lens and have it installed by the doctor around the corner. But this doesn’t always work out the way you’d like. And aside from expertise, perfect results require the perfect equipment. Even if you do the operation correctly, but made inaccurate measurements, the patient won’t be excited about the world they see. They won’t see what they were promised. Speaking of this new lens, though, I need to add that they’re toric, which allows the ophthalmologist to relieve the patient’s astigmatism without any incisions or complications. Due to the elongated focus, the problem of “middle distance” is brilliantly resolved. Everything through this lens is in seamless focus – the mountains, sky, television, road signs, GPS, the eyes of your beloved… An unbroken range of focus!

It seems that we are step-by-step becoming bio-robots, whose vision will soon exceed that of a regular, dull human. How do you feel about it?

It’s clear that everyone wants these lenses, but the lenses aren’t sufficient by themselves. They aren’t suitable for everyone, and the company that produces them wants to ensure the best results from the start. Therefore, the spread of these lenses has been limited, starting with only those surgeons who have shown them to be the best. The company has decided who this will be in each city and county. Modestly, I note that I am at the top of that list in the Los Angeles area.

I’ll tell you a secret – I spoke with a patient who was lucky enough to be matched with Symfony. He said he could see better now than before the cataracts, when his vision was 20/20.

That says a lot.

LASIC, CATARACT, GLAUCOMA: Take advantage of the latest technology and one of the best teams in LA

Benjamin Eye Institute310-494-7193

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