Refractive Lens Exchange
Hill Country Eye Center is proud to offer Refractive Lens Exchange. Sometimes called a Clear Lens Extraction, it is used to treat a wide range of nearsightedness and farsightedness. This procedure involves removing the eye's natural crystalline lens and replacing it with an artificial lens. The process is the anatomical equivalent of cataract surgery; however in cataract surgery the lens is clouded, whereas in this surgery, the patient's crystalline lens is clear. Refractive Lens Exchange is a better alternative than other refractive procedures in certain patients with high degrees of nearsightedness or farsightedness. The main advantages are rapid visual rehabilitation, excellent optical quality, predictability of outcome, and long-term stability. The other major advantage is that Refractive Lens Exchange, by virtue of removing the natural crystalline lens which is the structure which eventually becomes a cataract, prevents the need for subsequent cataract surgery in our older patients or those who already have the early signs of cataract formation.
Refractive Lens Exchange (RLE) is precisely the same procedure that we use to remove cataracts. Small incision cataract microsurgery is the most commonly performed procedure in all of medicine with extremely consistent excellent outcomes. Refractive Lens Exchange combines this procedure (crystalline lens removal) with the use of carefully chosen (often multifocal) implants to provide excellent vision without glasses or contact lenses in patients in whom such surgery is preferable to laser vision correction. The combination of Refractive Lens Exchange with laser vision correction represents a powerful and important tool for providing excellent vision for many individuals.
Conversely, our patients who already have visually significant cataracts have the option of combining their medically necessary insurance reimbursed cataract removal with the use of refractive technology, namely multifocal implants such as ReZoom, ReStor, and Crystalens or astigmatism correcting toric implants, to provide levels of vision without glasses or contact lenses that rivals that resulting from LASIK. Both Dr. Restivo and Dr. Jayawant specialize in Refractive Lens Exchange. As refractive surgeons they can select from a wide array of treatment options to maximize patient outcomes.
Refractive Lens Exchange (RLE) is precisely the same procedure that we use to remove cataracts. Small incision cataract microsurgery is the most commonly performed procedure in all of medicine with extremely consistent excellent outcomes. Refractive Lens Exchange combines this procedure (crystalline lens removal) with the use of carefully chosen (often multifocal) implants to provide excellent vision without glasses or contact lenses in patients in whom such surgery is preferable to laser vision correction. The combination of Refractive Lens Exchange with laser vision correction represents a powerful and important tool for providing excellent vision for many individuals.
Conversely, our patients who already have visually significant cataracts have the option of combining their medically necessary insurance reimbursed cataract removal with the use of refractive technology, namely multifocal implants such as ReZoom, ReStor, and Crystalens or astigmatism correcting toric implants, to provide levels of vision without glasses or contact lenses that rivals that resulting from LASIK. Both Dr. Restivo and Dr. Jayawant specialize in Refractive Lens Exchange. As refractive surgeons they can select from a wide array of treatment options to maximize patient outcomes.
