Cataract surgery

The type of lens has nothing to do with the fact that your eye has impoved, the lens will only function in the way it was designed to. There are 3 types of intraocular lenses (IOL), they are monofocal, multifocal and accommodating. To know which one you want you will need to understand how each of them work.

Monofocal only give you one focal point of vision, so you will still need glasses to help you see certain distances either near or far depending upon which distance you and your doctor decide is best for you. Most people opt to be far sighted with the monofocal lens and wear reading glasses.

Multifocal lenses use a principle that is similar to a bi-focal or tri-focal pair of glasses but the variation of the lens is done in a circular zone instead of in lines like the glasses have. The two marketed ones are ReZoom (manufactured by AMO - Advanced Medical Optics). and ReStor (manufactured by AcrySof).

Accomodating lenses work in the same manner as your actual lens. It is attached to the same muscles that your original lens was on so it flexes in the same way. Most patients who have this lens actually have 20/40 vision right after the surgery with improvement as they heal. Crystalens is the name of this lens and is made by Baush and Lomb.

The main reason for choosing one lens over the other is strictly financial. Most insurances will cover monofocal lens only, so any difference in the price is usually paid by the patient, and can be as much as $10,000 in some areas of the country. However, some people are not candidates for the other two lenses. If you have the following symptoms: colors seem yellowish,sensitivity to light such as halo or glare, difficulty seeing at night, double vision in one eye, need a brighter light to read, or your vision is blurry talk to your doctor.

Hope this answered your question. If not feel free to ask. Good luck, Susu