All About Cataracts

Bausch & Lomb today announced the worldwide launch of a new accommodating intraocular lens (IOL) with aspheric optics for use in cataract surgery.

The new IOL, called Crystalens AO, is designed to be free of spherical aberration that affects other IOLs and thereby produce sharper vision after cataract surgery. The announcement follows recent FDA approval of the Crystalens AO for use by cataract surgeons in the United States.

The aspheric optical surfaces of Crystalens AO are designed to improve retinal image quality without compromising depth of field, and therefore the new IOL provides higher quality distance and intermediate vision than other IOLs, according to the company.

“The Crystalens AO has zero spherical aberration, and the combination of the Crystalens platform and AO optics work together to enhance depth of field,” says Andy Corley, president of Bausch & Lomb’s global surgical division in a press release issued today by the company.

The Crystalens AO is the latest addition to the Crystalens line of accommodating IOLs produced by Bausch & Lomb, joining the Crystalens HD and the Crystalens Five-O. Currently, Crystalens is the only brand of accommodating IOL that is FDA-approved for use in cataract surgery performed in the United States.

Unlike conventional IOLs, the optical portion of accommodating IOLs can move slightly within the eye in response to focusing effort, to improve not only distance vision, but intermediate and near vision as well, reducing the need for reading glasses after cataract surgery.

Accommodating IOLs are a premium intraocular lens and therefore will increase your cataract surgery cost.

More information about Crystalens accommodating IOLs is available on Bausch & Lomb’s Crystalens website or by calling the company at 1-877-SEE BETTER.

Subjects undergoing cataract surgery with implantation of the AcrySof Natural IOL (Alcon Laboratories, Inc., Fort Worth, Tex.) achieved better contrast sensitivity under conditions of veiling glare than subjects receiving a clear IOL, according to a new study.

Researchers at the University of Georgia (Athens, GA) assessed the vision of a total of 58 subjects: 17 with yellow AcrySof Natural IOLs implanted after cataract surgery, 20 with clear IOLs implanted after cataract surgery and 21 control subjects who did not have cataracts.

The yellow-colored AcrySof Natural IOL filters ultraviolet (UV) and high-energy visible light (also called “blue light”), which has been associated with glare.

Two tests were performed:

1. Visual acuity under veiling glare conditions. Subjects watched a contrast sensitivity (CS) target while a circular xenon lamp was directed toward their eyes and the intensity of the light was adjusted until the target was no longer visible.
2. Photostress recovery. The time required to detect a CS target after a 5-second exposure to an intense circular disk of broad-band xenon light.

In the test of visual acuity under veiling glare, eyes with the AcrySof Natural IOL could withstand significantly more light than eyes with a clear intraocular lens and eyes with a natural lens (no cataracts).

In the photostress test, visual recovery was faster in eyes with natural lenses (no cataracts) than eyes with either type of IOL. Photostress recovery times in eyes with the two types of IOLs were similar.

The researchers concluded the blue-filtering AcrySof Natural IOL is associated with reduced glare disability compared with clear IOLs and control eyes without cataracts.

The AcrySof Natural IOL may be considered a premium intraocular lens and may increase your cataract surgery cost if you choose this lens implant.

The full report of the comparison test (“The effect of the AcrySof Natural lens on glare disability and photostress”) is published in the August 2009 issue of the American Journal of Ophthalmology.

Bausch & Lomb (Rochester, N.Y.) recently announced the U.S. launch of its new Akreos MICS lens, a foldable intraocular lens (IOL) designed for implantation through a 1.8 mm incision during phacoemulsification cataract surgery.

The ability to insert the new acrylic lens through such a small incision offers several potential advantages, including faster healing and less surgically-induced astigmatism, according to the company.

The lens also features aspheric optics designed to reduce spherical aberration and produce excellent post-operative vision. (Spherical aberration is a common higher-order aberration that can degrade vision and cause glare and halos around lights.)

The new Akreos IOL represents a new level of micro-incision cataract surgery (MICS). With most other IOLs used in MICS, an incision of 2.2 mm to 2.75 mm is required.

Prior to phacoemulsification technology, incision sizes of 10 mm or greater were common in cataract surgery, with greater risks of eye infection, delayed healing and other cataract surgery complications.

Because the Akreos MICS lens is a premium IOL, it may increase your cataract surgery cost if you choose this implantable lens for your surgery.

The Akreos MICS is the latest addition to Bausch & Lomb’s Akreos line of IOLs. First introduced in Europe over 10 years ago, more than 3 million Akreos IOLs have been implanted worldwide, according to the company.

German company S&V Technologies has created custom-made intraocular lenses (IOLs) for animals with cataracts. The acrylic IOLs are implanted in the animals’ eyes during a procedure essentially the same as cataract surgery for humans.

Human cataract surgery is the most frequently performed surgery in the United States, and more than 90 percent of patients achieve good vision. For animals, cataracts usually mean blindness, according to Indgeborg Fromberg, head of the company’s veterinary division. Treating cataracts can improve the quality of life for animals, which have relatively short life spans, Fromberg says.

The company’s lenses have generated interest from around the world, including Sea World in San Diego for a sea lion that performs tricks, an Australian nature park for a blind kangaroo and a Romanian zoo for a visually impaired lioness. Additionally, the World Wildlife Fund has paid for cataract surgery with the lens implants for brown bears in a China nature reserve.

The company’s IOLs have also been used to restore vision for racehorses, circus animals, guide dogs and domestic pets.

Although the surgery is pricey, Fromberg says that many people consider their pets to be part of their family and are willing to pay the cost to restore the vision of their beloved furry friends.