Latest cataract treatments?

My big concern is not the removal of the lens, but what they replace it with. I am very nearly sighted (-5.25 in one eye and -6.00 in the other) and have an astigmatism. Don’t they make one chose between being corrected for distance or close up? How could I make such a difficult choice? I think cataract surgery works best on people with good eyesight. Just by humble opinion from talking to people who have had it done.

@barbaradh
I also am extremely nearsighted with astigmatism. When cataracts really began interfering with my vision, I opted for laser surgery to remove the cataracts as well as lessen the astigmatism. It was absolutely worth it; my eyesight has not been this good since I was 8 years old. I did not want to lose all close up vision, so was offered the choice of having one eye corrected for distance and the other for close vision. It really has worked out pretty well for me. I do still need reading glasses, also for driving, but most of the time I’m fine without any glasses. I didn’t realize how occluded my vision had become until after the surgery. I did have to pay extra to have the laser procedure, but it was worth it because of the astigmatism. I did have a skilled, very experienced surgeon, who spoke with and communicated well with my Opthamologist, that was really important. He was very clear about any risks involved, but felt I could have a good outcome, and I have. If you can find a doctor with a good track record whom you trust, I would say go for it.

Another case of listening to the "I heard it on the grapevine"...... Cataract surgery is performed literally 10s of thousands of times a day with miniscule failure rate. ALL surgeries, even minor procedures come with risk. The issue becomes first does the reward (i.e. seeing) outweigh the risk? Heck, you stand a larger chance of getting hit by a car in a parking lot than a failed cataract surgery performed by a "non-production" competent surgeon who specializes in the process. There are "cataract machine" centers and then there are surgeons who are thorough, cautious and detailed.... This is a case of ensuring YOU have done your homework in seeking a competent and reputable surgeon and surgical location. That is not done on forums like this, but by researching providers credentials, histories, ratings & reviews (though problem is most only report "issues" and never report successes). My wife has been through the process, starting eye issues unrelated to cataracts and then dealing with the cataracts. She chose a surgeon who had a fully equipped, state of the art surgical center, with a long history of outstanding outcomes who took every precaution, up to and including having her assessed by another expert who deals with eye disease and retina issues. There were several assessment and testing visits, including a pre-op visit the day before for each eye. End of story was two surgeries, two weeks apart, perfect outcome..... BUT....we did "OUR" homework....and in the process visited three surgeons and promptly dismissed one and then the other..... It takes WORK on YOUR part........as the Canadian Docs on YOuTube say at the end of every program...."YOU are incharge of YOUR own health!"...

@barbaradh
I also am extremely nearsighted with astigmatism. When cataracts really began interfering with my vision, I opted for laser surgery to remove the cataracts as well as lessen the astigmatism. It was absolutely worth it; my eyesight has not been this good since I was 8 years old. I did not want to lose all close up vision, so was offered the choice of having one eye corrected for distance and the other for close vision. It really has worked out pretty well for me. I do still need reading glasses, also for driving, but most of the time I’m fine without any glasses. I didn’t realize how occluded my vision had become until after the surgery. I did have to pay extra to have the laser procedure, but it was worth it because of the astigmatism. I did have a skilled, very experienced surgeon, who spoke with and communicated well with my Opthamologist, that was really important. He was very clear about any risks involved, but felt I could have a good outcome, and I have. If you can find a doctor with a good track record whom you trust, I would say go for it.

@barbaradh
I also am extremely nearsighted with astigmatism. When cataracts really began interfering with my vision, I opted for laser surgery to remove the cataracts as well as lessen the astigmatism. It was absolutely worth it; my eyesight has not been this good since I was 8 years old. I did not want to lose all close up vision, so was offered the choice of having one eye corrected for distance and the other for close vision. It really has worked out pretty well for me. I do still need reading glasses, also for driving, but most of the time I’m fine without any glasses. I didn’t realize how occluded my vision had become until after the surgery. I did have to pay extra to have the laser procedure, but it was worth it because of the astigmatism. I did have a skilled, very experienced surgeon, who spoke with and communicated well with my Opthamologist, that was really important. He was very clear about any risks involved, but felt I could have a good outcome, and I have. If you can find a doctor with a good track record whom you trust, I would say go for it.