I live in Canada and the wait list for cataract surgery is long. To see the surgeon for the first time is over a 1 year wait and then you wait again for 3 or 4 months to actually have the surgery. The clinic I was referred to had an opening within a few months of me being put on the wait list, so I jumped at the opportunity. The surgeon said I was at the place with my cataracts where I could have the surgery done or wait until it interfered with my life more. My husband was legally blind by the time he went through the waiting process for cataract surgery and since I did not want to end up in that situation decided to be put on the surgical wait list. I have not received my surgery date yet.
The technician operating the machine that measures your eye was obviously learning. She had an experienced person sitting with her and telling her which pictures to delete and which were good and walking her through what to do. She did not tell me when it was okay to blink and just kept telling me to hold my eye still. My concern is should I be worried the measurement was not done correctly? I have been told these machines will let the technician know which pictures are not satisfactory and which pictures are good, but would like to know other peoples’ opinions. I am very concerned about getting an incorrect lens “prescription”.
I am having the Eyhance in both eyes, but my left eye will be Eyhance Toric because of my astigmatism. My right eye will not need a Toric lens.
I have had the same experience in Alberta. In total I believe I have had my eyes measured 4 times now. Twice were for cataract surgery and twice were consults for Lasik. The experience at Lasik MD was particularly bad. In the end I don’t know how one could tell if the measurements were good or not. About the only thing you could do is ask for a copy of the IOL calculation data sheet. And if you are so inclined you can take the readings from that sheet and input them to an on line calculator to see what power of lens is recommended for each eye. But, that does not check the accuracy of the raw readings, only the calculation of the required lens power.
.
The other thing you can do to improve the chances of them getting the power correct is to ensure they do the second eye no sooner than 6 weeks after the first eye. The eye is primarily healed by three weeks, and should be fully healed if there are no complications by 6 weeks. Here in Alberta our AHS allows for a check of the operated eye at 24 hours after surgery, again at 3 weeks, and a final check at 6 weeks. If you wait until after that final 6 week check then you will know how accurate the prediction of required power was on the first eye. That information can (should) be used by the surgeon to refine his/her calculation for the second eye. A little late for the first eye, but it improves the odds for the second eye.
.
Your other option of course is that you could wait until the cataract deteriorated more. Assuming it is a year or more then the odds are good that they would take the measurements again. Unless the cataracts are progressing rapidly I am not sure I would have it done before it was having a noticeable impact on my vision. The good thing is that you now have a set of readings that should be good. If the cataracts get bad really fast, which does not usually happen in an older person with no cause other than age bringing them on, you will have these measurements to fall back on. Eyes with dense cataracts can be hard to measure accurately.
.
The other thing that is happening in Canada is that in some provinces you can now have your surgery done in a private clinic and still have the cost of a basic lens and surgery deducted from what they charge. My first eye was done in a public hospital and I waited 18 months or more to get it done. My second eye was done in a private clinic (by the same surgeon) with a 3 week wait. I guess my point is that depending on what province you are in, other opportunities may open up in the next couple of years.
The other “opportunity” that a long wait can provide is the time to consider a mini-monovision solution with a monofocal lens instead of the Eyhance. The best way to consider this is to use contacts to simulate the mini-monovision prior to making a decision on what lens to use. Some surgeons will not present the monovision solution and prefer to sell you premium lenses instead. Mini-monovision is done with the basic monofocal lenses that I believe most provinces fully cover. Essentially that is what I did. My surgeon recommended an AcrySof IQ monofocal for my first eye, set for full distance and suggested I consider monovision for the second eye. The cost of my first eye was $50 or so for the eye drops. On my second eye I got a Clareon lens which is a bit better material and at the time was not covered by AHS. It cost me $300 plus the $50 for eyedrops. This lens power was targeted to leave me -1.5 D myopic and gives me the near vision for reading etc. The outcome for me was a virtually full range of vision from about 10" out to infinity without glasses for a very modest cost.
.
The “jam” that some get into like your husband is that their vision prior to surgery has deteriorated so much that a contact simulation of monovision cannot be done. A simulation is not totally necessary, but it does provide some comfort that you will be ok with a mini-monovision solution.