Cararact surgery options... i wonder

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

Annual eye check up. Doc says cararacts far enough along he recommends surgery. Im fine with that. I like seeing clearly...
Now for the standard lens medicare pays completely... yippee for that. However there is a multifocal lens they can put in both eyes so i can focus both near and far. Apparently the standard lens implant focuses far so you need reading glasses to see up close. They say most patients getting the multifocus lens (~96%) dont need reading glasses. While thats nice... medicare does not pay for tge multifocal lenses so i would have to cough up about 4700 dollars to get that option. .. i use reading glasses now... sure they are a bit of an agravation... but the question is are they a nearly 5000 agravation? Any one here get the mulifocus lenses? Any thoughts??? Thanks

[Ernie]

Had cataract surgery about 8 months ago. There were 3 options. Standard lenses covered by Medicare, prescription lenses for near or far for $2000 each eye, or multifocal lenses for $5000 each eye. I opted for the standard lenses and got great clear vision for distance. I was told that if the multifocal lenses don't work for you the replacement lenses cost isn't covered by medicare. I figured my vision is going to change as I age so glasses were probably inevitable later anyway and i would find another place to spend the $10,000. I can deal with glasses as long as my vision is sharp.
Check your options to be clear about the cost. I missed the EACH EYE phrase the first time I read it.

[Centaur]

I had the surgery a little over a month ago (on my dominant eye), and went with distance vision. I wear reading glasses, but I can shoot iron sights without them, and my distance vision is back to perfect. Probably will get the other eye in a year or two.

[clovishound]

I would do my research before going with the fancy new ones. I've talked to a couple people who have not been happy with them. Not a very scientific study, but I'm rather leery of them.

[Mr. Neutron]

Hi, Ozarkwoodswalker!!

I hope that your surgery goes really well for ya!!! I am fairly certain you will be happy even if you only choose the basic, Medicare-covered option to simply fix your cataracts. I'm kinda in the same boat as you, I think. Cataracts, but I also have astigmatism issues. A guy I know well at my gun club, and my aunt, have both had just the basic lens replacement for cataract "repair(s?)" within the last year, and both have said that it helped them a TON!!! I'm hoping whatever option you choose will do that for you, and maybe others here with these issues.

I have spoken to several people who have had their cataracts fixed with a new lens, and had the various versions/levels of distance fixing. Not one has had regrets. One of them is an Optometrist I went to church with. She simply got tired of wearing glasses and nearsightedness issues, so had the "level" of repair that fixes distance vision, but requires reading glasses at short focal ranges. She's really happy with that, and it is one that requires some money from the patient ($1850 per eye, currently).

I plan to get my cataracts repaired, along with astigmatism correction. This is the mid-level surgery/lens replacement that is what I described above: Improved distance vision, but still a need for readers. I will gladly pay for improved distance eyesight, if for no other reasons than for driving, hunting, shooting, dirt biking, and not having to feel as if I behave like the Mr. Magoo in the old cartoon series.

The clinic I'm planning to deal with does offer a 3rd level of lens replacement that is *supposed* to eliminate the need for glasses of any sort. I'm told it's very spendy, and know only 2 folks that have had it done. One has nothing bad to say about it, and is happy with it for now, but is "young" enough at 58 yrs. old he has been told he still may possibly require glasses as he ages, for distance vision.

The other person is my son, who has always been a little tough to squeeze information out of. He is 37 yrs. old, and says he has no regrets about having his distance vision fixed. I do for certain know this about my son: 4-5 yrs. ago, he came along with me on a hunt. He didn't have a tag, so he didn't have a rifle, but carried my 10X binoculars. We spotted 2 feeding bucks at around 125-150 yards, after belly crawling up to them. At that time, with my glasses and the 9X rifle scope, I could not see antlers on one of the bucks. My son assured me they were both bucks, and "the one on the right" was the bigger of the two bucks. But hard as I tried, I could not put antlers on that deer on the right The background vegetation and the angle he was feeding at (butt facing us) wouldn't let me see anlers on that deer. Just couldn't see them at all, and we looked 'em both over for several minutes. Since they were feeding away from us, when the buck on the left turned slightly broadside I made an "executive decision", and shot that one on the left. Since it was ME pulling the trigger, I needed to be as certain as possible that I was taking a shot at a buck (which was all my tag was good for). The little buck went down right away, and the other deer, ran away in a route that plainly showed me I had, indeed, shot the smaller or the two bucks. After my boy finished bagging on me for shootin' the "little forky", I realized that he does indeed see much better than I do...... We both had optics, so I can't say for certain how much his eye surgery helped him, but his eeyes worked better than mine.......

Good luck with whatever you do, Ozarkwoodswalker! I hope it goes really well for ya!!

And clovishound, I totally get where you are comin' from about ANY sort of lens replacement. Messin' with your eyes is a spooky thing to me. I dunno if I'd go for the multifocal lens replacement even if I could afford it. I don't know anyone personally that has had issues from it. That said, there is a similar thread to this one on another website I go to called Northwestfirearms.com. If I recall correctly, there are at least a couple of memebers there who had a multifocal "repair" done that had some ghosting or light flare issues. I believe these were done many years ago, with Lasik surgery??? I dunno...... I just know the Dr. that I will be getting to do my surgery did my aunt's cataracts, and my Optometrist friend's surgery. I think it's a gamble, sorta, but not really much of one nowadays.

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

Im thinking i might just get the standard and roll on.....

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

Thanks for all the excellent thoughts guys. Appreciate ya taking the time to reply in depth.

[Travlin]

Maybe a little late on posting this but I had both eyes done a few years ago. I went with the distance option as I knew I could get reading glasses for very little $ Big surprise as I can read normal print computer, books etc without specs. Also St. Lukes sent me a refund of my co-pay and I can see iron sights and the target no problem. They did one eye and then about a month later the other . With what I know now I would travel a long way to have them fix my eyes.By the way I just turned 75 and my eyes are better than they have been for 35 years.

[Shakey Jake]

My eye doctor, and I trust her, said not to bother with the upgrade. So, when it comes time I'll just get what Medicare pays for.
Jake

[daytime dave]

I got the regular lenses in both eyes and am reading the computer screen without glasses. I need readers for up close reading or very very small print.

Good luck.

[cooperhawk]

I said I'd like the far and then I'd use reading glasses up close. When it was done I had near vision. I complained
to my eye doctor and he raised his voice to tell me there were "no guarantees". He's not my eye doctor anymore.

For a year my eyes seemed to change, but once I started taking CBD gummies my vision cleared to almost perfect.
I can't tell you why, but I'm typing this without glasses and I often get in the car without my glasses only to have to go
back and get them because my license says I have to wear glasses to drive. I just don't seem to need them anymore.

Now I am not saying that CBDs did that. I don't know. I started CBDs to help with the arthritis in my hands and it
helped a lot. I can sign my name again, but it does seem to help with a lot of other things as well.

They made them legal in Minnesota a few years back.

[dave77]

Had both eyes done about 5 years ago with standard lenses. Right eye has distance lens and left eye has lens for close work. No issues. Wear glasses when driving as it appears peripheral vision is better.

Did they have you try it out with contact lenses first? I had a friend that had that done with her laser Lasik surgery and they had her wear the different lenses first to make sure she could adjust to it.

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

Confusing for sure.... i wavier onevway and then another. Talked to two people that had the upgrade and loved the results. Have to let the eye place know by next week... guess i will study on it... thanks again for the great input! It is very helpful!!!

[dave77]

I tried hard contact lenses back when I was a teenager and hated them. Tried soft lenses probably around 30 years ago and they were much better but even after a month I could still feel them in both eyes. Not painful but annoying, so I went back to my glasses.

My eye doctor is one of the cataract surgery specialists here, I was lucky to get to keep her as my primary eye doctor. I've had the beginnings of cataracts for quite a while now but she says they are still nowhere near bad enough to require surgery.

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

After leaning one way and then the other ive decieded to get the multifocal lenses. Paid the doctor his part today. Surgery center wont take their part until the day of. Im comfortable its the right for me. Stay tuned to see what tune i sing after the surgery and healing.

[Mr. Neutron]

Glad to hear that, OZWW!!!

How soon is your surgery scheduled?

Geez Louise, I hope they "move things along" a little quicker there in MO than here in OR. I had a Consultation appointment in April (scheduled that appt. back in early March.... ), get my eyes "measured" for the new lenses early July, 1st surgery (they do 1 eye at a time) in late August. Each surgery gets 2 post-op appointments, one the next day, and one 2 wks. later. Then the surgery for the other eye and it's post-op appts.. With lotsa eyedrops in between. I hope to be seeing better just a few days before hunting season opens. Not a quick thing to get done here, at least with the Dr. I chose.

My Dr. explained that the surgery for whatever you have done (only cataracts, cataract and distance correction, or the cataract/distance/near vision combo correction) are essentially the exact same surgery; it mainly differs by what level of correction you choose (and pay for..... ). I will be getting lenses similar to yours (cataract and astigmatism/distance correction).

[Ozarkwoodswalker]

July 19th first eye, august 2nd is second eye....

[daytime dave]

Good luck with the surgery.

[Ernie]

My surgery was a breeze. They were moving people through about every 20 minutes. Be sure to use the drops as prescribed.

[Mr. Neutron]

Hope your surgery went well for ya today!

There was a cancellation from someone else, so I get my first eye done tomorrow morning.