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Transition to femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery may be surgeon-driven
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 Alaa El-Danasoury |
ABU DHABI — Once surgeons are convinced of the advantages of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery, patients will request the procedure and be willing to pay the additional cost, according to one surgeon speaking here.
Patients want the best solution in terms of safety, results, fast visual rehabilitation and spectacle independence, in addition to affordability, Alaa El-Danasoury, MD, said at the World Ophthalmology Congress. While femtosecond laser-assisted surgery offers improvement in all other parameters, cost remains an issue. The procedure costs $1,000 more than standard phaco and is not covered by third-party payers.
However, patients like "the magic" of lasers and perceive the superior precision and reproducibility as an advantage, Dr. El-Danasoury said.
A similar phenomenon happened with femto-LASIK, according to Dr. El-Danasoury.
"Quite a few surgeons, including myself, were not convinced that it was worth such a huge investment, and now in many practices LASIK is 100% femtosecond. Patients are happier and don't mind paying the extra cost," he said.
Dr. El-Danasoury believes a comparable transition will happen with cataract surgery.
"The only concern I have is that industry and adverts may increase patient expectations beyond proven results, as it happened with the illusion of 'eagle vision.' We need to watch this, to avoid having to deal with patients' disappointment and dissatisfaction," he said.
- Disclosure: No products or companies are mentioned that would require financial disclosure.