High Definition Vision with Permanent Contact Lenses

HOUSTON - Many people get tired of dealing with eye glasses or contacts and either don't want to undergo LASIK - or they're just not candidates for it. That's when permanent contacts may help them out.

Craig Matus has been dreaming of better vision for years. He's been nearsighted, or can't see far off, since he was a child.

"I hate wearing glasses, especially since I'm outside a lot - I hunt and fish, and my glasses always slip down on my nose", explains Craig.

He goes on to say how irritating pollen and dust are to his contacts. He finds it terribly uncomfortable.

That's why he decided to try "High Definition Visian". The Visian lens looks a lot like a typical contact lens except it's rectangular instead of round, and stays in the eye permanently.

Dr. Edward Wade at the Eye Center of Texas was one of the first in the Houston area to perform it.

"Visan I-C-L" is completely different from LASIK surgery. With LASIK, we're basically operating on the cornea, the clear surface of the eye, and we're flattening the cornea with LASIK", says Dr. Wade.

Many people aren't candidates for LASIK. Dr. Wade says many people aren't functional without their glasses or contacts, but their poor vision is too extreme to undergo LASIK. Others have a thin cornea and should not undergo LASIK.

The third type of patient suffers from severe dry eye. Dr. Wade says this is a common problem, but LASIK can make it even worse. These are the patients he says who definitely will benefit from the Visian lenses.

Plus, he says patients are able to go on and undergo a procedure called "Restor", which helps when people in their 50's lose their focus while reading. Patients who undergo LASIK are not a candidate for Restor, but patients who undergo Visian can undergo Restor later in life.

Visian takes about 10 minutes per eye and involves a tiny incision in the eye, to insert the lens. Though patients are awake throughout the procedure, they do not experience any discomfort.

The patient, Craig was instructed to look into a bright light. Dr. Wade held his eye open with a retractor.

Craig says the light just made him see bright, swirling colors. He couldn't see any of the medical instruments or even the implant being put into place. It's such a small incision, no sutures are needed.

Dr. Wade says there are few risks with this surgery, just infection, like with all procedures.
Patients use antibiotic drops days before surgery, drops during and after the procedure, to lower the risk.

This is what Dr. Wade asked Craig: "Out of a scale of 1 to 10, and 1 is clipping your toenails and 10 is the worst thing you can imagine - where would you put this? Craig: This is like a zero, I don't feel anything".

Craig was able to see perfectly with 20-20 vision shortly after his surgery.

Dr. Wade says this procedure is more expensive than LASIK. Visian costs around $3200 per eye, while LASIK is closer to $2000 per eye.

Dr. Wade says these permanent lenses will lend perfect vision for life. The only time they'd have to be removed is if/when the patient has to undergo surgery for cataracts, later in life.

On the Web:

STAAR Visian ICL -- http://www.visianinfo.com/