IOLs Yesterday and Today
A Brief History of IOLs.
The evolution of cataract surgery took a giant leap forward in 1949, when an English eye doctor named Harold Ridley developed and implanted the first intraocular lens
Intraocular lens (IOL): An artificial lens that is implanted in the eye during cataract surgery to replace the eye's clouded crystalline lens., or IOL. Although surgeons had been removing cataracts for centuries, up until Ridley’s discovery, there was no safe or effective way to replace the extracted natural lens. Ridley’s IOL, made of a hard plastic that imitated the crystalline lens, finally allowed cataract patients the chance to restore some of their original eyesight.
Today, all IOLs still share the same basic construction – a round lens (called the opticLens optic: The round central portion of the IOL that serves as the corrective lens.) to correct vision and two arms (called hapticsLens haptics: Two arms on the IOL that help keep the lens in place and centered in the eye.) to keep the lens in place in the eye. Other than these few shared characteristics, however, modern IOLs tend to widely vary in design. From Ridley’s original lens, a rapid evolution in IOL innovation led to the development of a variety of different lenses, each with their own unique material, features and advancements.
Lens Material
The majority of modern IOLs are made from either a hard plastic called polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), silicone or a soft, foldable acrylic called AcrySof® lens material.
PMMA and AcrySof® lenses have similar properties, but they differ in one key area – PMMA forms a rigid lens, while AcrySof® lenses are flexible. The first of their kind, AcrySof® lenses can actually be folded up before insertion into the eye, where they then gently unfold into their permanent position. This foldable AcrySof® material actually allows for smaller surgical incisions without the need for sutures, providing faster recovery times and better patient results.
IOL Innovations
Recovering healthy vision after cataract surgery is a miracle in itself – over the years, however, AcrySof® IOL advancements have made it possible for cataract patients to realize clearer, more youthful vision than they could have ever thought possible.
The light-filtering AcrySof® Natural IOL blocks ultraviolet (UV) and high-energy blue light, both of which may be potentially be harmful to the eyes. The aspheric AcrySof® IQ IOL corrects irregularities in the curvature of the eye, for enhanced image quality. Some IOLs even correct other conditions in addition to cataracts, like the astigmatismAstigmatism: A vision problem that results in blurred distance and/or near vision. Light rays entering the eye are bent unequally, preventing the formation of a sharp focal point on the retina.-correcting AcrySof® IQ Toric IOL.
And now, all of these efforts have culminated in the development of the new AcrySof® IQ ReSTOR® IOL. The first of its kind, the AcrySof® IQ ReSTOR® IOL draws upon decades of expertise and technology for an IOL that truly helps cataract patients see it all – near, far and everything in-between – without the need for glasses or contact lenses.
With innovative, vision-restoring technology, and an excellent record of safety and effectiveness, it’s no wonder that AcrySof® IOLs have become the most frequently implanted lenses in cataract procedures worldwide. Ask your doctor if an AcrySof® IOL is right for you.
- As of June 2009.
Glossary Terms
Roll over the bold purple text to view the definition. A full listing of terms is available in the glossary.