Opinions on Cataract Surgeon Experience
Posted , 10 users are following.
Hello, I am new here and in fact stumbled across this website when I was googling about my cataract surgery results. I'd like to share my experience to get some feedback from you. I will try to be as objective as possible.
1.) I am 52 and highly myopic. About -10 dipoters in the right eye and about -10 in the left with -3 astigmatism in the left eye as well.
2.) I had retinal detachments in both eyes in my early 20s but have had scleral buckles in both eyes and haven't had any retinal troubles since. Every retinal surgeon I've had has mentioned how well the original surgeon had attached the buckles and how unlikely I will ever have trouble with retinal detachments in my life.
4.) I had a posterior vitreous detachment in my left eye about 3 years ago that resulted in a huge Weiss ring in my central vision. My retinal surgeon performed a vitrectomy and cleared that all up nicely.
5.) I also had a posterior vitreous detachment in my right eye which didn't require a vitrectomy.
6.) I have always worn glasses and soft contact lenses both throughout my life.
7.) I found it harder and harder to see out of my left eye and my retinal surgeon determined that I had a big cataract forming probably due to my high myopia and all of the surgeries I had to it.
8.) According to the retinal surgeon I also have a small cataract forming in my right eye as well although it doesn't bother me.
9.) The retinal surgeon referred me to a cataract surgeon to have my cataracts removed.
10.) After going through extensive tests at the cataract surgeon's office the assistant doctor (not the surgeon) and I thought it might be best to set my left eye for intermediate vision and my right eye to distance vision. She also thought it made more sense to get a toric lens for both eyes even though I only had a little bit of astigmatism in the right eye. But she said she wouldn't recommend the multifocals due to the halo/glare issues nor would she recommend the Crystallens/Trulign family as they were twice the price and I the modified monovision I was going to get would have similar results.
11.)So I paid for the cheaper Toric lens and not the Crystallens/Trulign.
12.) When the doctor examined me he was very brusque and kind of rude actually. Out of the blue he made a comment how my scleral buckles could break any time and that my eyes were a real challenge for him to get the prescription right, etc. I didn't know what to say especially about the buckle comment but it bothered me.
13.) The plan was to do the left eye first and then the right eye a week later.
14.) In surgery as he was cutting in my eye, he started yelling at his nurse about how she is not keeping up with inventory or something and made her apologize to him as she was irrigating me. This also bothered me.
15.) In recovery they gave me the box for the lens they implanted and it was in fact the Trulign lens (even though I picked and paid for the normal Toric lens).
16.) I did research and found out that the Trulign lens is made of silicone which is not recommended for patients with retinal history due to a contraindication with silicone oil used in some retinal detachment surgeries. This is the same guy who out of the blue shared how my buckles might just break someday.
17.) I then started to have edge glare issue coming in from the left side of my face.
18.) Now here is me getting paranoid. But I started to wonder if the inventory issue that he was yelling at the nurse about had to do with my Toric lens not being available so he sacrificed one of his more expensive lenses to get me out the door. I also wonder if the Toric lens diameter was not correct for my pupil size since I've heard this can cause edge glare. However, the resulting acuity of the prescription is perfect!!!
19.) The box did have my name on it with prescription so it does look like it was purposely ordered and not just thrown in at the last second.
20.) Today I went back for my post-op follow up. Everything looked fine and I'm healing well. My visual acuity is right where it should be.
21.) I asked the doctor about the edge glare and he gave an "ahh crap" look on his face and just said "can you live with it?" He said that we don't want to do any more work in that eye and that the bag is loose and the sky is falling kind of negativity that he seems to have. I didn't get a straight answer whether the edge glare will go away or what other risks he was talking about. Especially since he never told me of any such risks before he did the surgery. He just made it sound like the scleral buckles are doomed to fail at some point and all the structures in the front are loose and I guess just plain awful.
22.) I then asked the doctor about why he used the Trulign lens when I had picked and paid for the cheaper one. He made it sound like he did me a favor and that he felt I could use the accommodation especially since I'm only in my 50s and not 70s. He now said that "I gotta live life" and I can't wear an inferior lens because of the possibility someday of having a retinal detachment that required silicone oil. WHAT?? Mr. YourScleralBucklesMayBreak is suddenly optimistic.
23.) I then asked what we should put in the right eye and he said Crystallens since I don't need a Toric but but then went on to say that he will give me a good deal on it so I won't have to pay full price. But that I should have these accommodating lenses because they are better for my situation.
24.) After talking about how my eye structures were really loose and I may have problems in the future (I guess along with my scleral buckles snapping), I asked if it's wise to even do the cataract surgery in my right eye since I can see with them very clearly (with contacts).
25.) He agreed and immediately canceled my surgery and honestly I was kind of relieved.
26.) I won't be able to wear glasses now that 1 eye is -10 diopters and the other eye sees 20/20 intermediate (magnification differential is huge). So I will always have to put a contact lens in my right eye to function.
27.) The doctor did do a good job getting the prescription correct and it is healing fine however....
Questions:
1.) Is it realistic for me to not have the other cataract surgery so that I will have to wear a contact but cannot wear glasses. It's kind of awkward but I do see good with the contact lens in.
2.) I read that the Trulign silicone lenses are not known for having edge glare issues. Do you think the doctor put a lens in with the wrong pupil size?
3.) He made me feel like my eye is going to fall apart either from the back or the front. Do you think he is right?
4.) Did he pull a bait and switch on me?
5.) The Trulign lenses have other unique risks like the accommodation getting stuck in a certain position. Shouldn't I have known these risks and agreed to them before he just decided to put one in for me?
6.) Do you think that he did have my interest in mind when he put the Trulign accommodating lens in or do you think it was a mistake that he didn't want to own up to?
Well anyway that was my experience today and honestly I feel pretty horrible. I'm not sure if he was actually acting in my best interest but just had a really terrible bedside manner or if he was a bit lazy and didn't want to address my edge glare issues cautioning me to not have anything else done to my eye. Or worse that he was kind of a shyster con-man as well.I'm curious what you guys think.
0 likes, 19 replies
soks danzamann
Posted
even i am told to live with the glare if i can and use constricting drops. they have a 7mm iol in europe but not in US so they dont have a choice.
danzamann soks
Posted
Thanks for the info. Do the drops work for you? Do you have to put them in often? I assume they require a prescription.
soks danzamann
Posted
try over the counter Lumify from Bausch and Lomb and see if it works. it is diluted brimonidine tartrate. it has preservative so be careful about long term use.
if that doesnt work then try alphagan. it gives you a weird 2 minute headache in the brow area. you could also try pilocarpine but that has risk of retinal detachment. both alphagan and pilocarpine require prescription but they work for me.
ayeaye danzamann
Posted
Google the voluntary recall on crystallens..there was even a lawsuit on crystallens-trualign .. I cant paste the link but you can google search it.
Your eye dr is A CROOK..A CON MAN..DISGUSTING..DEPLORABLE..STAY FAR AWAY FROM.THAT @$$hole.. I feel so sorry for you.
Guest danzamann
Edited
Wow, what a story!
What ever happened, your doctor have failed miserably explaining to you, what he is doing and why.
It have been a very bad experience for you, and off course now you don´t know what to believe from him.
You need to see another clinic, and get a second opinion, it is the only way you can get the information you need right now, in this forum you will find opinions pointing opposite ways.
No eyes are the same, there can be a good reason that the surgeon have made this choice. Before surgery I was advised that during surgery there might turn up something, that required another lens than planned for, but in all cases your surgeon should have informed you better.
Good thing is that your vision turned out well, with no complications, beside the edge glare.
If the lens looses its accommodation abilities as years goes by, I guess you will still have the same far vision.
About risk of retinal problems, I would say your surgeon is probably not a retinal expert, and it is probably his own fear of having to deal with such a problem, that he is projecting over at you.
About loose capsular bag in the front, this could actually be the reason he went for a silicone lens, but off course I am only guessing here. When your eye heals up, the tissue around the lens will secure it in the capsular bag, so I believe the loose condition is not a problem now, that surgery went well and the lens is placed where it should be. Healing takes about 6 weeks.
I think the surgeon talks about the loose capsular bag in regard to if he had to change the lens to get rid of the edge glare, then I think the loose bag could become a problem for the surgeon to deal with.
So all in all, seek second opinion, you need it to calm your mind.
What type of edge glare do you have?
danzamann Guest
Edited
Thanks for that information. It was very helpful.
Regarding edge glare, I get light streaks and sometimes flares that come from a light source that is to my left. So if I'm staring straight ahead at 12:00 and a lamp on a desk or a light in the ceiling is between 10:00 to 11:00 relative to that, I will get light streaks from the light source to my eye. Kind of like if you watch a movie where the camera pans around outside where the sun is in the sky and you get the flare that comes across the screen even if the sun isn't directly filmed.
Is this the normal edge glaring that people have as far as you know? I've read here that some people's glare goes away after 6 months or so. I'm not sure if the brain ignores it or if there is some healing (adjusting) in the eye that closes off the glare.
Sue.An2 danzamann
Posted
What a story - you've certainly been through a lot. I agree with Danish about finding another clinic to have that eye fully examined.
It is true that edge glare can diminish with time. I experienced it with my LE (but not RE). It takes a good 6 weeks for eye to heal following uncomplicated cataract surgery. Basically that lens will be shrink-wrapped and a lot of the glare will subside in 6 months time. Hopefully time will show this to be true for you.
Guest danzamann
Posted
Ok, I had that type of edge glare in one of my eyes in the dark, but I don´t think about it any longer. I have no idea if it has gone away, or if I am just ignoring it.
Sometimes people refer to a crescent shadow in the outer edge of the vision, when they say edge glare. I had that too - I still do if I look for it, but I never think about it any longer.
I have acrylic Zeiss lenses by the way.
Does the edge glare change if you look straight into the lamp for a moment? Some people can do this, and then the pupil restricts and the disturbance goes away.
danzamann Sue.An2
Edited
I'm glad to hear that it sounds like the capsular bag tightens up on the lens. I am also concerned about loose zonules and whether these are what the surgeon referred to as part of the loose components of my eye. He never mentioned them but I found out that these are what have an influence for an in-the-bag iol dislocation later on. They tend to be longer and less stable in persons like myself that have axial myopia (long eyeballs). I wonder if another doctor would be able to give me more information about this in my eyes or whether they actually have to go in and do the surgery to know. I hesitate to ask the surgeon who put my iol in as he come across super negative. Do you happen to know anything about these zonules or iol lens detachments by chance?
danzamann Guest
Posted
The flaring tends to occur more in a darker room where there is maybe 1 light source rather than a fully illuminated room. During the day or in a bright room I notice different things like what appears to be hair in front of my eyes or glares off to the side. This happens when I use a dual monitor and I sit in front of the monitor on the right. The light from the monitor on the left does weird things to my peripheral vision. I'll try staring at a light to see if that helps with the flares and streaks.
By the way, do you have any opinion on those eyedrops that can reduce the size of the pupils?
Guest danzamann
Posted
I have never tried those eyedrops, but for some they work good, for others they don´t work.
Try to search the member Soks in this forum, I know he is using these drops on a regular basis, he knows the do´s and don´t about these drops.
Sue.An2 danzamann
Posted
Pretty sure if another surgeon dilated your eye could determine upon examination whether lens is in correct position / centered.
seeherenow49806 danzamann
Posted
Wow! Definitely see another surgeon (or two) for another opinion! I had a second surgeon do my 2nd eye surgery because the first doc had a poor bedside manner and was not onboard with my plan. Don't hesitate to use a different surgeon if/when you do the 2nd eye.
My excellent 2nd surgeon told me in Aug 2018 that most surgeons have stopped using the Crystalens for most patients because of several problems: 1) the haptics can get stuck in a particular position causing the need to remove the IOL; 2) it's difficult to predict which patients will be able to move their muscles easily enough for the accommodative lens property to work; and 3) Crystalens IOLs tend to work best for people who are farsighted.
If you are in the USA, check on Yelp for opinions of surgeons in your local area. Also, if you have an optometrist, ask for a different referral than the one your retina doc gave you.
Re glare - I had intense side glare from light on the left the first couple days, then it subsided significantly. Within a month it was barely noticeable. Now the only time I have noticeable light aberrations is if I move from a dark space (room or outside at night) to a light space, or vice versa. And that is rare.
So sorry you've had such difficulties. Wishing you the best possible outcome!
ara21947 danzamann
Edited
Hi, I hope you are feeling better each day now. Wait until you feel more comfortable with your eyes and speak to speak to someone about a product change done while you were under anesthesia. Unless you agreed on your consent form she could make last minute changes, this isnt legal. You have paperwork where you signed for and paid for a certain lens and then got another. At minimum, you should get a refund.
danzamann ara21947
Edited
Well my visual acuity is excellent and the only complaint I have is the edge glare. It's my understanding that edge glare can occur with other lenses as well. So I'm not sure assuming the risk of another surgery to that eye is worth it. However I do think it's worth going to another surgeon and getting his/her opinion . Thanks for your comment.
kevin77191 danzamann
Posted
Did your edge glare ever go away?
danzamann kevin77191
Posted
No it hasn't but I'm more used to it and accepting it. I have issues in that eye with Cystoid Macular Edema which is more of an issue now.