Multifocal lenses

Posted , 8 users are following.

Recently I had done cataract surgery on both eyes with multifocal lens. I was told by my doctor that the halo around the lights and the web of rings will go away once my brain gets used to the lens. I decided to go with multifocal lens because I know someone that did it and he had no side effects whatsoever, he has perfect vision at night. Just a lens cost $2,500 per eye, are there different types multifocal lens? Did I miss something here? Please share your opinion I'll greatly appreciate it.

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • Posted

    It will help if you can post what type of lenses you had installed. This should have been discussed with you beforehand. You also should have been given a card with your IOL information on it.  

    If you had a multifocal, which creates 2 or 3 focus points then you will have halos around some bright, point sources of light at night. This won't go away but it should lessen and for many people, their brains "tune it out" so that they no longer notice it. I notice them all the time at night and they haven;t really lessened but they also don't bother me as they don;t adversely impact my vision, it's just different.

    In a true halo, you'll see the defined source of light (in the center), then a gap and then one or several rings of light around the object (often in the same shape, like rectangular rings around a rectangular headlight). 

  • Posted

    Hi there.  What lens did you use.  I had both eyes done in April of 2018 with Tecnis Symfony Toric IOL (multifocal) lenses.  At first I thought I would never get through this.  The doc told me the same thing.  However, with my lens I don't feel it will ever go away.  I see concentric circles mainly around LED lights and halos.  The circles are huge but to be honest with you it doesn't bother me as much as it did when first done.   My left eye is for up close and my right eye is for distance.  Did you have same?  

  • Posted

    Hi - I have 2 Symfony lenses.  Not sure why after all this time doctors continue to say the halos go away.  People get used to them and tune them out but they do t go away.  There is a difference.  And for some personality types they are more bothersome than others.  These should be discussed with patients honestly so they decide for themselves.  It is a trade off to seeing well at all distances without needing glasses if the power calculation is spot on.  But even that is never a guarantee.

    If you can post your type of lenses we can let you know a little more info about the halos.  With Symfony I see 10 or so perfectly concentric rings around certain light sources and depending on distance they are big, although light (spider web effect).   I have become accustomed to them but do still notice these.  They just aren’t as bothersome now when I drive.  

  • Posted

    Hello, thank you so much for sharing your experiences and knowledge.

    The lenses that I have are Premium Symphony, there is another lens that they have it's called "Restore " I just wonder if that's the one that has no side effects like halo and rings around the lights.

    Have a wonderful day everyone !

    • Posted

      Symfony is an extended focus IOL that provides distance, intermediate and some near focus. Restor is a full multifocal IOL that provides two focus points, distance and very near - but intermediate range may be blurry. Restor usually has bigger halos than Symfony, but not the circles around some lights in the distance that is often described as a spiderweb.

    • Posted

      Derek has posted extensively about his experience with Restor 2.5 lens if you want to look that up here on the forums. Any EDOF lens or multifocal will have more glare and halos vs a monofocal lens.

    • Posted

      Your vision results seem pretty good. Since you have Symfony, the tradeoff should be some faint concentric circles around certain objects at night. Halos (which would be a brighter ring around these sources) can happen with any IOL but there isn't anything in the Symfony design that should specifically create this artifact (unlike a true multifocal where a halo will always be present due to the lens design).

      There really isn't any multifocal/EDOF design that is free of side effects. If a surgeon tells you this they aren't being honest. This is definitely a case of "nothing being free." To extend your range of vision (compared with a monofocal IOL) these types of lenses all have some side effects as a tradeoff for the added range of vision. It is true that a sizeable percentage of patients aren't bothered by them or "tune them out" but they are present when simulated using optical equipment. These could be reduced contrast sensitivity, halos, faint concentric rings or webs. As of now there isn't any design (that I know of) which is free of these issues other than a monofocal. If one existed, every one opting for premium lenses would be getting the same lens.

      Keep in mind too that a percentage of people with monofocal IOL's will have side effects due to other aspects of the surgery as it's not just the IOL that causes issues.

  • Posted

    I have 22/20 distance vision and 20/25 reading vision both eyes have same multifocal lens

  • Posted

    "I know someone that did it and he had no side effects whatsoever."

    I know someone like that too. Apparently about >20% of those implanted with Symfony lenses are in this category.

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