Presbyopia is a term that isn’t known in the general community, yet everyone will eventually suffer from it. From the age of 45 onwards, people who haven’t needed glasses or contact lenses throughout their life gradually find that it’s hard to read in dim light, or small print becomes difficult to focus on.
The term Presbyopia comes from the Greek term ‘ presbys’ meaning ‘elder’ and ‘opia’ meaning ‘sightedness’. There’s no commonly understood term, and so doctors often refer to it as ‘age-related near vision loss’. People who suffer from it refer to it most commonly as ‘loss of reading vision’ or ‘time to wear reading glasses’.
Until recently, there have been limited procedures, techniques and technologies that can provide vision correction for those 45 and over. However, thanks to improvements technology and pioneering eye surgeons such as Dr. Patrick Versace, more and more options are available if someone wants to throw away their reading glasses.
KAMRA
Dr. Versace can now offer a revolutionary new procedure that’s available in Australia. KAMRA is a corneal inlay which has been in clinical trials over the past 3 years. He was one of two ophthalmologists in Australia who were involved in the trials, and is now one of the first to offer the procedure to patients commercially.
An opening is created in the cornea using a laser, then the device is surgically inserted into the cornea. Only one eye is operated on – within the days and weeks after surgery, the brain automatically re-adjust one eye for near vision (reading, sewing etc) and the other eye for far distance (watching television, driving etc).
Because KAMRA is a corneal inlay, it can also be removed at a later date – say, if a patient requires cataract surgery.
Laser Blended Vision
With laser vision correction technology improving over the years, the treatments available now extend to people who suffer from age related near vision loss. Laser blended vision is one of the options Dr. Versace offers patients who want to reduce their dependency on reading glasses.
Laser Blended Vision (a form of monovision) involves the same laser (an excimer laser) that Dr. Versace uses to perform LASIK on younger patients. Sometimes called Presby-LASIK, this new software developed by the German company, Carl Zeiss, has allowed Dr. Versace to perform corneal laser surgery, adjusting one eye for near vision, the other for distance vision.
Refractive Lens Exchange
A refractive lens exchange (RLE), sometimes called a clear lens exchange or a lensectomy, is the same procedure as cataract surgery, except the the reason for doing the surgery is to get rid of glasses.
Dr. Patrick Versace is a specialist in high end intraocular lenses.These days, there are a number of options to choose from – bifocal, multi focal, lenses which correct astigmatism.
When you book a consultation with him, he’ll assess your vision needs, discuss your lifestyle and then recommend the right lens.
Which Procedure is Right For You?
If you’re over 45 and are sick of reading glasses, you might be considering one of the procedures that will reduce your dependance on needing them to see for near vision. However, everyone is different, and every eye is different.
The procedures offered by Dr Patrick Versace at Vision Eye Institute Bondi Junction offer his patients a variety of options – during your assessment, tests will be performed and what you want to achieve will be discussed. This will allow him to outline which one is right for you.
To book an appointment with Dr. Versace, call 1 300 1 EYES now, or click here.
