Cataracts.

[eldar]

I have cataracts. Developed very rapidly, about 15 months.

Need specs for distance and mid range.

I’ve been referred to get them fixed, which is good.

Question is, what sort of lenses.

NHS single vision, which means ok for distance, but specs for closer. No charge.

Or private. Tri-optic lenses, so no need for specs - or 90% probability. Cost 6k

Anyone any experience of this?

[Slushbox]

Recent thread here:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

It's really down to how much faff/expense you want. Had both mine done in the last year, went for distance vision in both eyes, courtesy NHS. Can now detect the gender of a gnat at 100 metres, or something. Spectacular distance vision, if you'll pardon the pun. Driving and flying again is great.

My close vision is fine for use with a laptop or desktop screen at say an arms length, watching TV, Supermarket 1.5+ readers for books/anything closer. I can read the small digits on my Casio digital watch at 2ft. without reading glasses. (See below)

1st appointment at the NHS measures your peepers for the new implants. They tell you then what they can achieve, and ask what you'd prefer. Some go for 'monovision' with one eye at close vision, and the other at long.

Your eyes may well differ to mine, though.


These figures:

Edited by Slushbox on Friday 18th January 17:53

[eldar]

Thanks slushbox, that sounds an excellent outcome with the standard lenses. That sort of result will be most acceptable

[elanfan]

I had an invasive eye surgery last May. This took weeks before I could see to any reasonable degree, then it started going misty and the surgeon thought it might be blood residue behind the lens. Months passed and it’s become worse and he now says the surgery precipitated a cateract. So another surgery is coming for lens replacement. I asked my surgeon about multifocal implants (and bear in mind he is the top man in my local hospital) and he said that they waste around half the light going into your eye because half cannot focus (or at least be interpreted by your brain) i.e. the part of the retina focussed on something far away is doing nothing when looking at something up close (make sense?).

He said to me you want as much light as possible to land on your retina and so he doesn’t recommend these multifocal lenses. Remember you might have a near cosmetic problem today which might be a lot worse when you’re older and messing with multifocal lenses now could prejudice your vision later on.

Just repeating the advice I was given.

[Mr Pointy]

eldar said:

I have cataracts. Developed very rapidly, about 15 months. Need specs for distance and mid range. I’ve been referred to get them fixed, which is good.

Question is, what sort of lenses. NHS single vision, which means ok for distance, but specs for closer. No charge. Or private. Tri-optic lenses, so no need for specs - or 90% probability. Cost 6k

Anyone any experience of this?

NHS monovision lenses won't correct any astigmatism so depending on your exact prescription you may end up without perfect distance vision & needing prescription lenses for reading as well. You can get toric implant lenses privately which should correct any astigmatism if you have it.

There's a new combination where they put in a monofocal lens but then add a multifocal in front of it. The claimed advantage is that the multifocal can be removed if things go wrong later:

https://www.laservision.co.uk/treatments/duet/

I've no idea of the cost, but it must be pretty high.

[Slushbox]

eldar said:

Thanks slushbox, that sounds an excellent outcome with the standard lenses. That sort of result will be most acceptable

You're welcome. (I am not an eyeball doctor.)

Just checked optimal close reading distance: it's about 0.9 metre, for text on a 22" desktop monitor with Pistonheads messages. (This one).