Dr. Kameen's Blog

I have just returned from our annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology(AAO) in Orlando, and the meeting could not have been more interesting. Ophthalmologists from all over the world attend(over 30,000) and topics range far and wide.

The prevailing hot topic this year was the continuing evolution of the femtosecond laser to perform the majority of the cataract procedure(rather than our current manual method), thus allowing the surgeon and patient to aim for even greater accuracy when calculating postoperative uncorrected vision. This spectacle independence is what so many patients want and, until the past 5 or 6 years, even the best cataract surgeon could assure only about 50% of the time. It is interesting, that the average likelihood of spectacle independence after Lasik or PRK surgery(Laser Vision Correction) is over 98%. Historically, these same goals after the removal of cataracts have only been achieved approximately half the time.

Over the past several years there have been two advances that have revolutionized modern day cataract surgery and have allowed our predictability and accuracy to now rival our lasik results! These two additions are the approval of the femtosecond laser device to do the majority of the cataract procedure. This allows for absolute accuracy of incision placement, cataract removal, intraocular lens placement and correction of any residual astigmatism. The second advance has been the addition of numerous new Advanced Technology Intraocular Lens designs (ATIOL's) that allow us to correct distance as well as near vision and grant many more patients greater freedom form glasses or contacts.

Keeping watching this space and also the attached videos, as I will be going into much greater detail over the coming months!