Clear Lens Extraction at Burcham Eyecare Center

Modern ophthalmology offers an amazingly wide range of options for surgically improving your eyesight, even though many people are only familiar with LASIK for correction of refractive errors. But LASIK and certain other surgical treatments tend to be most effective against myopia (nearsightedness), and you may have a different type of severe refractive error that would respond better to another method. For some patients, the ideal alternative is clear lens extraction, a service we're happy to offer here at Burcham Eyecare Center in Aurora, CO.

Understanding Clear Lens Extraction

Clear lens extraction is also referred to as refractive lens exchange (RLE) or lens replacement surgery. It refers to the removal of a "clear" lens, which is a lens not suffering from the cloudiness of cataracts, with an artificial clear lens. The artificial lens can be fabricated to compensate perfectly for a refractive error such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, or presbyopia, ridding you of the need to wear eyeglasses or contact lenses.

When is clear lens extraction preferable to other surgical forms of vision correction? Surgeries that reshape the corneal tissue, such as LASIK and PRK, are still considered the best way to correct most degrees of nearsightedness. But these procedures aren't quite so effective against extreme cases of farsightedness or presbyopia. Phakic lenses, lens implants that are inserted alongside your natural lenses, are also less than ideally suited for these conditions. Clear lens extraction has no such limitations. If you need to correct your presbyopia, you can choose between monofocal lenses, which provide near vision correction for one eye and distance vision correction for the other, or multifocal lenses, which provide multiple corrective levels for each eye.

What to Expect From Our Aurora Ophthalmologist

Our Aurora ophthalmologist will evaluate your condition to make sure that clear lens extraction is the wisest choice for your needs. We will also go over any risks you may need to consider, such as the potential for lens dislocation, elevated eye pressure, infection, and glare or blurriness from your new lenses. The procedure itself is quite similar to cataract surgery, correcting your vision painlessly through a quick outpatient surgery in a matter of minutes. You may feel some mild eye discomfort during the first weeks of recovery, but you should be able to resume most normal activities with a week or so.

Get All the Facts From Our Eye Care Center

Does clear lens extraction sound like the permanent vision correction you've been looking for? Learn more by calling Burcham Eye Center at (303) 340-4600 and arranging an appointment at our Aurora Eye Care center!