My PanOptix Experience – Both Eyes
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I was severely nearsighted from an early age, about -6 in both eyes. I wore glasses and contacts my whole life. Clear vision without correction began about 4 inches from my face and ended at about 8 inches. Ten years ago, in my 40s, I began to develop cataracts and since then my sight got worse, eventually diminishing to around -13.75 in both eyes. By that point, my unaided depth of vision began around 2 inches and ended at 4 inches. My right eye was worse, giving everything a yellow tint. I’m a writer so using a computer was important to me. Ditto reading a cell phone. Ditto driving. Contacts and glasses kept me functional, but good vision was slipping away.
Like most of you, I did research, considered monofocals, EDOF such as Vivity, Synergy, and tri-focals such as PanOptix. I read accounts of people who mixed IOLs of different types, monovision, under-correction, and so forth. As most of you know, there is no single ideal choice for IOL. On paper, PanOptix offered the most depth of focus compared to a dozen other products, but I read about flickering, halos, glistenings, loss of contrast, and other scary problems.
In the end, I put aside those concerns and chose PanOptix for both eyes because they offered the best potential improvement. My ophthalmologist suggested I do both eyes on the same day. That takes trust, but I was ok with it because of how I researched physicians. I chose my doctor out of six recommended candidates, and the final two candidates both performed exams with diagnosis and consultation. Ya... I did it twice. Totally worth it.
Correcting both eyes simultaneously has some practical benefits for recovery. My doctor and I agree that both eyes recover better and faster when healing together, learning how to coordinate in sync. This is preferable to judging vision in one eye while the other is out of sync. Again, it came down to trusting my doctor, and the needs of my particular condition.
At 30 hours post-op, my distance eyesight was 20/40 in each eye. After one week, it’s still 20/40 per eye and that kind of sucks because I want 20/20, but my doctor says it may take a few more weeks for my eyes to improve. Also, I had slight astigmatism in both eyes before surgery, and the correction for that will be done, perhaps as necessary, after my eyes have settled. At this point, I don’t notice it.
Contrast is BETTER than before, most probably because previously I was pushing light through cataracts. Blue is now crazy-luminescent blue! Clear vision starts at about 14 inches (35 centimeters) with a gradual acceptable drop off as I move closer to about 10 inches. Beyond 14 inches, my vision seems perfect, tho it’s actually 20/40 per eye. I don’t use readers or glasses.
Dunno what crazy magic these trifocals conjure, but everything appears clear with no intermediate drop off. There is occasional flicker, but it’s minor and goes away immediately as I naturally move my eyes. It’s not a bother. There are halos and starbursts around lights at night, but they’re not a problem, not disorienting. They seem unremarkable to me, and much less obtrusive than previous halos and glare with cataracts. My night-vision contrast seems excellent.
In short, I see much better now than before. Is it better than with contacts and glasses when I was 25? I’m in my 50s now, and it seems that way, tho I’m probably misremembering. It’s certain that I was corrected to 20/20 back then. But today’s vision seems quite good, and I’m seeing 20/20 when both eyes are open.
Will my recovery proceed smoothly? Will I develop posterior capsular opacification (PCO)? Will I need YAG? Will my vision improve or be stuck at 20/40 for each eye? Will I develop glistenings? Will I have some other complication? I don’t know. Overall, the probability of full recovery and no complications is reasonably good. And I’m very happy today.
As I mentioned above, I considered Vivity, Synergy, and many other IOLs. PanOptix overall has the specs for what I want. And based on everything thus far, PanOptix meets my expectations. I don't need glasses or contacts... Wow... just wow!
Every eye is different. Some people have outcomes less favorable to mine. I hope this report gives readers a balanced idea of how PanOptix lenses work, at least for me.
1 like, 11 replies
author11
Edited
Update...
I’m nearly two weeks post-op and my vision has improved to 20/30 in both eyes. Doctor is intentionally underpromising and won’t say that my vision will improve further, but he says it’s possible. He kept me on drops, which means I’m still healing and there is hope that my eyes reach 20/20 for distance. Everything else is pretty much the same. I’m reading down to #1 on the Jaeger Eye Chart with a drop-off when stuff gets closer than 14 inches. Night driving is good. Halos and starbursts happen, but they’re unremarkable and not disorienting. I know some people have problems with photopsias, but it seems my eyes and brain handle them well. or perhaps photopsias are not happening in a disturbing way. I dunno. For me, it's just not an issue.
My main problem is unlearning a lifetime of once-necessary habits that are now obsolete. For example, when I go to bed, I grab at my face to remove glasses that no longer sit on my nose. Ditto when putting in eye drops. When I come home, I think about taking out my contacts, but I don’t wear contacts. My wife thinks it’s hilarious.
kelly92739 author11
Posted
My husband had his first eye done with the PanOptix lens almost 2 weeks ago. He is still wearing his glasses and says that his vision is not any better, colors have improved, but that is it. He is seeing his surgeon for his second follow up tomorrow He is hesitant to do the next eye which is scheduled in another week . What is your experience with transition time to better vision with these lenses?
kevin1951 author11
Edited
Congrats. It is heart-warming to hear success stories. I agree it is impossible to remember exactly how one's sight was years ago. Glad you are doing so well.
john31185 author11
Posted
Thanks for sharing.
I'm high myopic and considering panoptix too. May I ask how about the contrast? Do you notice any reduction in contrast or ghosting image, especially in dim light.
author11 john31185
Posted
Significantly better contrast with PanOptix now compared to before surgery when I had cataracts, most noticeable contrast improvement in dim light. Before surgery, my jet-black phone resting on my jet-black nightstand would disappear in dim light. Literally gone from sight. Now I can see the frame and the shiny screen contrast against the flat background when light is dim.
Daytime seems like a scene from Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Bold colors pop out everywhere. This runs counter to some patient reports and Alcon literature, but keep in mind that Alcon literature compares PanOptix contrast to a monofocal IOL, not a cataract.
No halos or starbursts from daytime or nighttime landscapes illuminated with reflected light. Some halos and starbursts when a light source is shining directly at me. Doesn’t happen with a frosted light bulb. Does happen when looking at twinkly Christmas lights, or a line of cars. Overall, it’s not a bother, not disorienting. No ghosting.
Considering my alternatives, cataracts, monofocals, or EDOF. . . I’m satisfied with PanOptix.
Beth-R author11
Edited
Thank you for your post and update. I wear trifocals and just met with my ophthalmologist for removal of my first cataract (the other cataract will come out in another year). He suggested the PanOptix lens and said I might need glasses for very small print. Your post was uplifting and gives me hope this expensive option will be worth it. I am in my mid-60's, so I hope I won't experience any problems the rest of my life. Sometimes I over-research something and you have helped tremendously in my decision making. My surgeon is one of the top 2 in my area, so I'm sure he will do a good job. it's a big investment for both eyes, but if I won't have to change lenses the rest of my life, it will be worth it! I use 4 different sets of glasses for various tasks (1 single vision, 2 bi-focals and 1 tri-focal) and the last time I got all of the lenses changed at the same time the cost was just under $1000 (used my old frames). I rarely change all of them at the same time. The cost for both eyes will pay for themselves over time, and I won't need glasses... yaaaay! I might need readers, but will only need to replace them if they get damaged or lost. I'm also looking forward to being able to buy pretty sunglasses. I'm anxious to hear an update after you pass the 2 month mark. Congratulations on a successful surgery.
Songirl author11
Posted
are you worried about glistenings down the road? Did your surgeon discuss this with you at all?
author11 Songirl
Posted
My pre-surgery research indicated that the latest manufacturing technologies reduce the probability for glistenings. Nevertheless, I mentioned glistenings to my surgeon. He waved it off. Since I didn’t find any recent first-hand stories about IOL explantations due to glistenings, I decided that it’s a low-risk possibility.
kelly92739 author11
Posted
My husband had his first eye done with the PanOptix lens almost 2 weeks ago. He is still wearing his glasses and says that his vision is not any better, colors have improved, but that is it. He is seeing his surgeon for his second follow up tomorrow He is hesitant to do the next eye which is scheduled in another week . What is your experience with transition time to better vision with these lenses?
007Bond kelly92739
Edited
Sorry for the stupid question but why is he still wearing his glasses?
For just the unoperated eye?
You would need to give the brain time to adjust I think wearing your old glasses is not the way to go. But not sure on your whole story.
RonAKA kelly92739
Posted
It is always a good idea to wait 6 weeks for the eye to heal, and to have a full refraction test done by an optometrist to determine where the eye actually ended up. This will allow for a better decision on the second eye. The surgeon should learn something, if there was a miss. And you will have the chance to decide if that type of lens is what you really wanted.