Brooks Alldredge, OD

Last month, we started a conversation about extended focus IOLs and what makes a patient a good or bad candidate. Looking beyond the patient’s ocular health, one should also consider their profession, personality and hobbies

In our experience, many referring optometrists are comfortable recommending toric IOLs for their patients, but they may be gun-shy when it comes to extended focus IOLs.

Ultra-widefield imaging systems have been widely adopted in optometry, and for very good reasons.

This entry will continue where last month’s discussion on refractive lens exchange patient selection, limitations and risks left off.

In this month’s blog entry, we will discuss an intraocular refractive surgery that we may not see often but are likely already incredibly comfortable seeing for postop: refractive lens exchange.

An interesting case was recently discussed among the optometrists and surgeons at Pacific Cataract and Laser Institute.

Last month we explored the risk factors for a compromised capsule during cataract extraction. We will now explore different surgical options for lens implantation in the face of this complication, as well as their risks and benefits.

As we all know, the move from intracapsular cataract surgery, where the capsule and the lens are removed together, to extracapsular, where the capsule is left in place to secure the IOL, revolutionized cataract surgery.

This edition of the blog is directed primarily to optometry students and residents, although some experienced practitioners may find the content interesting.

With reimbursement decreasing and the number and price of ophthalmic instruments ever increasing, all providers have to be conscious of limiting tests to those that reliably improve both patient care and outcomes.