cataracts Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Choose the Right Artificial Lens for Your Cataract Surgery

The AHA! Team — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 06:35:31 +0000

Larissa Biggers via Duke Health – Cataract surgery involves removing a clouded lens and replacing it with an artificial intraocular lens (also called an IOL) to improve your vision. However, not all IOLs are the same. Cataract surgery involves removing a clouded lens and replacing it with an artificial intraocular lens (also called an IOL) to improve your vision. However, not all IOLs are the same. Some can help you see near or far even better. Choosing the right lens for you can be confusing. Here, Duke corneal specialist, Terry Kim, MD, explains your options. What are my intraocular lens options? You have a one-time opportunity to select the lens that’s going to give you the best possible vision and improve your quality of life. It’s important for your doctor to explain all the options so you can make the best choice for you. Monofocal lenses correct your vision for distance or for near. You decide which is more important to you. For instance, you may want to correct your distant vision so you can drive without glasses but wear glasses for near work. If you are an artist or a dentist, you might choose to improve your near vision and wear glasses for distance. Toric lenses reduce your astigmatism to help improve the quality of your vision. Presbyopia-correcting lenses (also called multi-focal or extended depth-of-focus lenses) correct both near and far vision. For many people, this means depending less on distance glasses and reading glasses after cataract surgery. Which lens is right for me? That depends on your needs. If you’re comfortable wearing glasses after cataract surgery, a monofocal lens may be the right choice. If you want to avoid wearing distance glasses after cataract surgery and have astigmatism, a toric lens might be appropriate. A presbyopia-correcting lens may be best if you want to avoid wearing distance and reading glasses after cataract surgery. It all comes down to what you want in terms of improving your eyesight and lifestyle. Are all IOLs covered by insurance? Monofocal lenses are fully covered. Toric lenses and presbyopia-correcting lens are not covered by insurance. You will pay an additional out-of-pocket expense — around $1000 per eye for toric and between $2000 and $2600 per eye for presbyopia-correcting lenses — if you choose one of these IOLs. How long does vision correction last? Vision correction achieved with cataract surgery is permanent. Is the surgery performed differently based on the type of lens you choose? Cataract surgery is the same no matter which IOL you select, but surgeons can use one of two approaches. In traditional cataract surgery, your eye surgeon uses a thin blade to make incisions in your eye, removes the cataract, and replaces it with the artificial lens. In laser-assisted cataract surgery, the surgeon uses a laser to make the incisions, which allows for more precision and safety. The surgeon then removes the cataract and replaces it with the artificial lens. Laser-assisted surgery can also reduce astigmatism, which is harder to achieve with traditional surgery. It’s important to note that insurance plans don’t cover laser surgery for cataracts. What should people know when considering cataract surgery? It’s important for you to spend one-on-one time with your eye surgeon before the procedure. Your surgeon should explain the surgical procedure and your lens options. Understanding your choices is the only way you can make an informed decision. To read the original article click here.

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Vision Impairment Is Associated With Mortality

AHA Publisher — Fri, 19 Mar 2021 07:00:08 +0000

Michigan Medicine – University of Michigan via EurekAlert – The global population is aging, and so are their eyes. In fact, the number of people with vision impairment and blindness is expected to more than double over the next 30 years. A meta-analysis in The Lancet Global Health, consisting of 48,000 people from 17 studies, found that those with more severe vision impairment had a higher risk of all-cause mortality compared to those that had normal vision or mild vision impairment. According to the data, the risk of mortality was 29% higher for participants with mild vision impairment, compared to normal vision. The risk increases to 89% among those with severe vision impairment. Importantly, four of five cases of vision impairment can be prevented or corrected. Globally, the leading causes of vision loss and blindness are both avoidable: cataract and the unmet need for glasses. The study’s lead author, Joshua Ehrlich, M.D., M.P.H., sought to better understand the association between visual disabilities and all-cause mortality. The work compliments some of Ehrlich’s recent research, also in The Lancet Global Health Commission on Global Eye Health, that highlighted the impact of late-life vision impairment on health and well-being, including its influence on dementia, depression, and loss of independence. “It’s important these issues are addressed early on because losing your vision affects more than just how you see the world; it affects your experience of the world and your life,” says Ehrlich. “This analysis provides an important opportunity to promote not only health and wellbeing, but also longevity by correcting, rehabilitating, and preventing avoidable vision loss across the globe.” To read the original article click here.

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Shining a Light on How Exercise Reduces Cataract Risk

AHA Publisher — Mon, 22 Jun 2020 07:00:20 +0000

University of South Australia via Newswise– Chinese and Australian researchers have combined studies of more than 170,000 people and found conclusive evidence that regular physical exercise reduces the risk of age-related cataracts, the cause of blindness in an estimated 13 million people worldwide. In a recent paper published in the International Journal of Ophthalmology, researchers from Xi’an Jiaotong University and the University of South Australia (UniSA) analysed data from six different studies looking at how exercise reduces oxidative damage in the eye. The researchers found a 10 per cent reduction in age-related cataracts (ARC) among people who engaged in regular physical activity such as walking and cycling. UniSA epidemiologist Dr Ming Li says physical activity reduces oxidative stress in the eye by inhibiting lipid degradation which results in cell damage. “We know that exercise increases antioxidant enzyme activity which has all sorts of benefits, including limiting infections and inflammation in the eye,” Dr Li says. Previous studies have shown that long-term physical activity also elevates HDL (high-density lipoprotein), otherwise known as the ‘good cholesterol’, which may carry more antioxidants from plasma to the lens to prevent oxidative damage. Exercise also improves insulin resistance and lipid profiles, both of which have been associated with an increased risk of ARC. “Age-related cataracts are one of the most common causes of vision impairment and blindness in the world and although surgery is an effective option to recover vision, it is very costly,” Dr Li says. “The lens is highly susceptible to oxidative damage because of its high concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acid and its specific biological function. Although we don’t completely understand the mechanisms underlying ARC, we do know that ageing and oxidative damage play a crucial role in the development of the disease.” The researchers found that the risk of developing cataracts could potentially decrease by two per cent for every hour of cycling or walking per day. “Considering the fact that 24 per cent of adults are inactive, these findings will hopefully encourage older people to start exercising on a regular basis,” Dr Li says. To read the original article click here.

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