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My right eye was over corrected when I had cataract surgery on Feb. 11, 2016. I was told by Doctor that I would need a piggyback lens implanted to correct blurry vision. Doctor states that FDA has to approve the new equipment the manufacturer had to purchase that manufacturers the piggyback lens. I was told that it probably won't be approved until July. Has anyone else had to wait to get a piggyback lens or should I go to another doctor for another opinion?
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mike88020 janice30449
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janice30449 mike88020
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Thanks for replying, I have thought there might be other options, maybe I should get another doctors opinion.
softwaredev janice30449
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If the lens power isn't off after surgery then they have 3 options: lens exchange to a different lens power, a 2nd piggyback lens, or laser surgery (LASIK or PRK, many docs seem to usually prefer PRK). Which one to use depends on how far off the lens power is, and various attributes of the surgery and your eye (e.g. how much space there is for a piggyback lens, how fragile the lens capsule was to decide if a lens exchange is easy, etc). Doctors will vary in their preferences, another opinion can't hurt.
In terms of the issue of waiting on FDA approval, there are options that are FDA approved. It is worth finding out why the surgeon thinks its better to wait on this one. Although I haven't had reason to research piggyback lenses, unfortunately the FDA is notoriously slow at approving new medical devices. Many ophthalmologists complain they keep us a few years at least behind much of the rest of the world. Many products approved in Europe are never even submittted for approval in the US due to the expense and time involved, even products from some American companies. I wanted to get the latest premium lens and wound up deciding to go to Europe in Dec. 2014 for my cataract surgery since it wasn't approved in the US, the Symfony (made by US company AMO), which still isn't approved here (I heard a rumor it might be within 6 months or so). There are a few different trifocal IOLs available in Europe (the multifocals in the US are just bifocals), I'd hoped to get one of those before the Symfony came out and I decided on that instead, and none of the trifocals are approved in the US, and I hadn't even heard of any of them trying for US approval yet.
janice30449 softwaredev
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mike88020 softwaredev
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softwaredev mike88020
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janice30449 mike88020
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Doctor did tell me that piggy-back lens is reversible.
mike88020 janice30449
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softwaredev mike88020
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There is less uncertainty involved in choosing the power of a piggyback IOL. Unlike when figuring out an IOL power to replace the natural lens, this is a corrective lens. Just like with a contact lens or glasses prescription, they can figure out what corrective power is needed. Overall they can determine the lens power required for a piggyback much more accurately than the original IOL. There is some uncertainty in the required lens power for a piggyback due to uncertain exact placement, but the issue should be small. The exact lens position does influence the power of a lens, but it will make less of a difference. If the original IOL was say 20D then whatever small X% change in power might be due to uncertainty in the exact placement of the lens is much smaller with say a 2D piggyback lens since X% of that is 1/10th the size.
adelaide11735 janice30449
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janice30449 adelaide11735
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adelaide11735 janice30449
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