The Acrysof ReSTOR Lens

If you have been informed by your doctor that you are a candidate for cataract surgery, you may want to consider the ReSTOR lens. In cataract surgery, your natural lens, which becomes cloudy, is removed and replaced with an intraocular lens. The majority of intraocular lenses that ophthalmologists use are designed to give patients good distance vision but patients still need to wear reading glasses to see things up close. Unlike standard lenses, the ReSTOR lens uses “apodized diffractive” technology to provide patients with near, intermediate, and distance vision. In the FDA clinical study, 80% of patients who received the ReSTOR lens reported that they no longer need glasses for any activities. Patients were so happy with their vision that 94% of patients said they would have the Acrysof ReSTOR Lens implanted again if given the choice.

Medicare and most insurance companies cover the cost for cataract surgery using the standard intraocular lens. If you choose the ReSTOR lens, there are some associated fees that you will be responsible for that are not applicable with the conventional lenses.

Patients without cataracts may also choose the ReSTOR lens to correct for far sightedness, near sightedness, and presbyopia to give them a quality range of vision like they had when they were younger. Presbyopia is a condition that usually starts to affect people in their early to mid forties when they can no longer see well up close. As a result, presbyopic patients have difficulty with activities such as reading, sewing, and using the computer. A procedure called a clear lensectomy, which is similar to cataract surgery, is performed to remove the natural lens and replace it with the ReSTOR lens. Refractive surgeries are elective procedures and therefore the patient is responsible for the cost of the surgery.

Even though the ReSTOR lens produces excellent results, there are some potential drawbacks with the lens including glare at night, halos, and decreased vision in low lighting. The ReSTOR lens is designed to provide independence from glasses and contacts for most activities, but it does not guarantee that you will be completely free from needing some correction for certain tasks. Additional refractive adjustments, such as lasik, may be needed to correct patients to their desired distance results.

Dr. Weisenthal is a certified ReSTOR surgeon and has performed thousands of cataract and refractive procedures. To find out if you are a candidate for the ReSTOR lens, or would like more information, please contact our special lens coordinator.