A SPACE-AGE lens that can overcome vision loss caused by old age is being used by two Bondi Junction-based eye surgeons. Patrick Versace and Michael Lawless are two of the first eye surgeons in Australia to insert the new Crystalens HD, an artificial lens implant designed to restore lost vision or replace lenses damaged by cataracts.
Dr Lawless said the technology was “as close as anyone’s got to mimicking the eye’s natural lens”. Dr Versace recently performed the surgery on wine grower and cattle owner Graeme Lewis, 55. Before surgery, Mr Lewis’s vision was poor, meaning he might need three sets of glasses every year. “I couldn’t even identify my cattle,” he said. Post-operation, Mr Lewis has tossed away his glasses for good.
