New cataract surgery eliminates need for glasses

Cataracts will affect all of us at some point. In surgery doctors remove the diseased lens and replace it with a mono-focal one. But now surgeons are using a mult-focal lens, which means patients don’t need glasses of any kind afterwards

Cataracts, a natural part of aging, will affect everyone at some point, but surgery can help treat the condition. Typically, surgery entails the removal of the diseased lens, which is then replaced with a mono-focal lens. While patients who undergo surgery are found to still rely on reading glasses afterward, new technology focusing on the replacement lens promises to eliminate the need all together.

“These new lenses, which have been very successful, allow patients to have much further depth of feel, so they could see things on their computers, Kindles, stuff like that,” Dr. Tal Raviv, an ophthalmologist, told FoxNews.com.

Raviv performs the surgery in two parts: the first with a laser to make cuts in the lens and soften the cataracts, followed by a quick procedure in the operating room to place the implant.

“What’s nice about this surgery is once the lens comes out and we put a new implant in, we’ve corrected their eye and that’s the way it will remain forever,” he said.

Vivian Gemelos, 70, was putting off her cataract surgery and was having trouble seeing the computer and numbers. Since undergoing surgery her vision has been completely restored.

“The light is clearer, and colors are more vibrant, and as I said I’m a visual person and I love painting and I was amazed with how bright the colors were, and I never realized that before there was an issue,” Gemelos told FoxNews.com.

Raviv said the procedure takes about 20 minutes and that patients can expect to begin seeing clearer in a few hours.

The lenses are not covered by insurance and can cost between $3,000 to $5,000 per eye.

As with any surgery, there are risks of infection and other complications depending on a patient’s overall health status. Raviv advised that patients talk to their eye doctors about options.