Implant gives vision of youth to ageing eyes
A BRITISH woman is one of the first eye patients to boost her sight with a revolutionary new artificial lens implant that mimics a camera zoom.
The plastic device replaces the natural lens in the eye and returns near-perfect sight to ageing eye
The plastic device replaces the natural lens in the eye and returns near-perfect sight to ageing eyes - smoothly adjusting focus to different distances and light conditions.
Charity consultant Susan Wright, 57, underwent surgery six weeks ago to fit a pair of the new Tecnis Symfony Intraocular Lenses.
Ms Wright, from Macclesfield, Cheshire, suffered from cataracts and struggled to see objects up close.
She said: "I stopped driving a while ago because I didn't feel comfortable with it, particularly finding my way anywhere if it was dark.
The plastic device replaces the natural lens in the eye and returns near-perfect sight to ageing eyes
"I work with spreadsheets and it was getting difficult to tell the difference between the numbers on a screen. But now my mid- and longrange vision are absolutely excellent and I have been told my short-range vision will continue to improve.
"Colours are much brighter and everything is sharper.
"I had planned to do a driving trip to see friends and I have achieved that now. I can thread needles for the first time when I am sewing and I read books and newspapers without reading glasses."
She had her final follow-up appointment with Brian Little, an ophthalmic surgeon, at the London Claremont Clinic last week. At a cost of £4,000 per eye, the implants eliminate cataracts, long or short-sightedness and astigmatism.
The lenses should never need to be replaced and cataracts will not develop again.
Previous implanted multi-focal lenses corrected near and far vision but had three distinct points of focus.
They produced halo bursts and glare and there was a noticeable jump when switching focus, rather than the smooth focus of a natural eye.
The new lenses also allow more light to get through so that colours are easier to distinguish. In clinical trials, 81 per cent of people obtained 20/20 long-distance vision and 73 per cent did not need glasses for near vision.