Crystalens® Lens Implants & Glasses

Question: What percentage of patients need to wear glasses after Crystalens® Lens Implants and why do they?

Answer: The need for eyeglasses with Crystalens® Lens Implants for lens replacement after Cataract Surgery or Clear Lens Extraction very much depends on the specific vision and lifestyle requirements and the accompanying patient selection criteria used by the Cataract Surgeon. Looking at FDA study data or associated manufacturers claims regarding the need for eyeglasses after Crystalens® can be a bit misleading and here is why. Each patient has an individual set of daily activities that are important to them in terms of being “glasses free” after Cataract Surgery. For an accountant, their visual world might be oriented around close near tasks for 75% of their daily activities. For a long haul trucker, their visual world might be oriented around needing clear distance vision for 75% of their daily activities. And-for a school teacher their visual world might be oriented around wanting “glasses free” vision equally for far, near and arm’s length. These are three very different sets of visual requirements and thus drive three different sets of expectations and “success” criteria. Thus, Crystalens® for the accountant might require glasses for close work all the time. Crystalens® for the trucker might require the use of eyeglasses only for reading paperwork-10% of the time and Crystalens® Lens Implants for the teacher may require eyeglasses for the time they are engaged in close work.

What you need to know is the near vision presbyopia correcting lens implants such as the Crystalens® Accommodating Lens Implant, the AcrySof®ReSTOR® Multifocal Lens Implant and the Tecnis® Multifocal Lens implant each have optical design characteristics that provide “sweet spots” of clear vision without eyeglasses. That is, one design might provide the best clarity for far and intermediate distances, another might provide the best clarity for near and far and only marginal intermediate vision and another might provide the best clarity for close and intermediate vision. Each lens design has a slight compromise and must be carefully selected and matched to the individual patient needs and their priority of ranges for clear vision. Near vision presbyopia correcting lens implants are not amenable to a “one type fits all approach”. There is considerable misunderstanding by patients that they can “shop” for a “brand” of lens implant by looking at manufacturers representations and advertising. The best results and highest levels of patient satisfaction are achieved when your Cataract Surgeon and their staff thoroughly discuss your personal vision requirements in terms of what activities you wish to be “glasses free” for and then help you set realistic expectations around a proper choice of Lens Implant.

So the answer to the question “What percentage of patients need to wear glasses after Crystalens® Lens Implants and why do they?” is not at all a simple one. It really depends on whether there was careful patient selection. In general however, 20-50% of Crystalens® patients who do a great deal of reading or close work should probably expect to wear eyeglasses for near vision during extended periods of close activities.

Important Note: The information presented on the About Cataract Surgery Blog or provided in response to a request for information in the Ask Cataract Surgeons section on aboutcataractsurgery.com is not intended to diagnose or treat eye problems, eye conditions or eye diseases including appropriateness of treatment, risks, complications or side effects as related to Cataracts, Cataract Surgery of Lens Implants. In particular a response to an inquiry made on the Ask Cataract Surgeons section of aboutcataractsurgery.com is not meant to take the place of the professional medical care provided by your eye doctor, ophthalmologist and Cataract Surgeon. Contacting us via e-mail or any other means is not a substitute for medical care.