Has Any One Else Noticed this Unusual Vision Issue with Symfony Lens

I was confused by table 16. Of the 147 candidates that received Symfony 5 would want a lens exchange vs 13 of the monofocal group of 148 patients wanted a lens exchange.

hi Sue.An, A while back someone brought up the accessdata query on Tecnis Symfony, majority of the problems reported were with other types of Tecnis IOLs rather than with the ZXR and ZXT.  I posted what I found out from gleaning through the reports, but the thread was deleted for some reason.

Since my surgery I have run into a few  here who have Symfony lenses - all pleased with them.  But they too inquired about lens types otherwise surgeon doesn’t bring it up and implants a monofocal lens.   And when I think back to my consult (as I had already googled cataracts and realized there were Lens options) I was the one to broach that topic.  I don’t think I would have known otherwise.

Yes, that is confusing and doesn't seem to match the footnote.

my feeling with my surgeon was monofocals simpler to get a good result although not glasses free.Multifocal patients have more sensitive result in that slight miscalculation of formulas, prior lasik, astig etc can affect results.

He also let me bring up what i wanted since i was told to get monofocal due to retina surgery.However i read the clinical trials and it seemed symfony worked quite welleven with some eye problems.this was an israeli study by  Dr kleinmann where they tested the lens in every eye needing cataract surgery ...

again so many elderly who really do not drive much at night sonheadlightbhalos not much of n issue..

.My dr. seemed to know i researched all the side effects brought about by the nature of lens extending clarity thru rings. He also was able to fix an astigmtism during the surgery with the laser’

Unfortunately those concentric circles won't disappear. I do not think it is a matter of time. It is part of the lens design that allows more range of focus. My surgeries were July and August 2017 and I still see them. Funnily enough those don't bother me so much as they are light. I did experience strong glare in the early months - so much do they hid the concentric circles.

i read an article this week in Review of Ophthamology regarding surgeons doing early treatment for pco when the actual culprit wasn't pco but positive or negative dysphotopsia. I posted that link on another thread - this week. It was primarily about pco but I found some insightful comments there. I will go back and see if I can find it and post here. Often either of those cause more of vision issue and play a bigger part into visual disturbances (thinking) than pco and to me account for differences in quality of vision for those of us getting premium lenses. you may prefer to go with a standard monofocal lens for your other eye when time comes that surgery is needed. If that ends up better you may want to consider exchanging the Symfony.

Good luck to you.

Thank you, Sue. My worst issue is I have lost fine-detailed vision. So in medicine, trying to evaluate: a skin lesion which turned out to be squamous cell CA on my husband's leg, a possible loss of a stitch with possible infection and pus which I could not perceive clearly even with bright light and magnifying glass (it was infected and the stitch was missing, but it had to get much worse before I could perceive it, my cat's stitches after spaying), perianal inflammation and swelling and possible pus from my dog's anal gland. I can forget removing a splinter unless it's large. Luckily, for now, I am not working, but I am very concerned about my physical ability to examine anything that relies on clear vision.

WHAT IS YOUR SURGEONS EXPLANATION..?TRY GOING TO YOUTUBE AND WATCH DR SHANNON WONG EXPLAIN THE RANGE OF FOCUS:I HAVE TWO SYMFONY LENS AND GET WONDERFUL FULL RANGE IN GOOD DAYLIGHT WITH A FADING OF SMALL PRINT IN DIM LIGHT :LOSS OF CONTRAST MY DR IS A CORNEA SPECIALIST AND REALLY GOES INTO DRY EYE BEING A FAR MORE SERIOUS THING THAN MANY KNOWI JUST THOUGHT NOT ENOUGH TEARS BUT MORE THAN THAT AND ALOT OF CLARITY IS VIA THE REFRACTIVE POWER OF CORNEA WHICH OVERTIME CAN GET PITTED MICROSCOPICALLYAND AFFECT VISION

Hi ArtBp

Where did you get pilocarpine drops??? I have been looking for them instead of using alphagan. What are their side effects?

I see a lot of posts which says the Symfony concentric circles bother people and then they list symptoms which I am experiencing but not due to concentric circles but a large SINGLE circle.

Pupil constriction removes my glare and large SINGLE circle but does not eliminate my concentric circles.

I think what you are describing is loss of contrast and you perceive it because you have an IOL in only one eye. The other natural eye has the contrast. I experience the same.

Thanks for your post.

I have dry eyes and it is quiet worrying sometimes.

Worried have your wife start taking a flaxseed oil or Omega3 supplement daily. Helps with dry eye. There are also many good eye lubricants on the market. Systane had a preservative free one I recently switched to. I find most days i do t need drops - just supplement unless I am tired.

pretty much my experience -- don't get a symfony in the other eye -- my regular iol tamps down the problems of the symfony somewhat. I wasn't told about the possible down side, either.

Thank you, Soks. My ophthalmologist in Miami prescribed the pilocarpine and I have barely used it - maybe about 10-12 times in two years. I only use it at night for driving mainly in unfamiliar areas where I need to read directions. Otherwise, I try to avoid driving at night and, when I must drive at night, just 'deal with' the glare and circles.

I am now in the process of getting the cataract in my right eye removed. This time I am getting a lens with no concentric circles that only corrects for myopia - I am -6.0 D in the right eye (the left eye was -6.5 D). And NO LASIK. I think the Lasik was what caused the glare. I will wear glasses, if needed. I should have never had the Lasik on the left eye - the ophthalmologist said that "people that have an eye shaped like yours do better with Lasik to change the shape". I should have waited to see what my vision was like with just the Symfony lens then decide if I needed the change to the shape of my cornea... water under the bridge. I was not eligible previously for Lasik because of thin spots in my corneas (keratoconus) which I told the Miami ophthalmologist multiple times, but he dismissed this. I was diagnosed by a cornea specialist at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.

I tried the drops for dry eyes which just made it blurrier right after the drops were instilled. The surgeon gave no explanation - it can take time to improve. I think the contrast point is valid in my case. Hopefully, having both eyes closer to each other in prescription and having a clear lens in the right eye will help significantly. I don't mind wearing reading glasses.

You should replace pilocarpine with alpahagan. Pilocarpine cause retina detachment in glaucome patients. Alphagan is 0.1% or 0.15% brominidine tartrate. OTC lumify works too but lumify has preservatives. It is 0.0125% brimonidine tartrate. Also pilocarpine and alphagan are expensive in the US (60 USD ? Month). So I get them when I travel internationally for 5$ a month. The foreign made also do not have preservatives in them and are to be thrown after 30 days. I further dilate them with systane preservative free vials. I have stopped using them until my next surgery. I dont want them to have problems dilating my pupil for the next surgery.

Thank you, again. I will ask the new ophthalmologist. He seemed to indicate that he won't refill the pilocarpine. I wouldn't mind trying something different. I really try not to use it or avoid situations where I need it - mainly night driving.