Viewpoint
Setting Our Sights on Presbyopia

Standing on the shoulders of its visionaries, ophthalmology has been able to see, and reach, so many new horizons. Small-incision, sutureless cataract surgery. Phacoemulsification. Intraocular, foldable lenses. Building on those milestones, our pioneers in refractive surgery led us to the ability to correct myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism elegantly. In the sights of the visionaries at work among us now -- presbyopia.

Exciting investigative work has begun on several corrective modalities that might move us beyond what we can do for our presbyopic patients today. We're doing pretty well now by reshaping corneas and implanting multifocal lenses, but the real victory lies in procedures that will reverse our patients' inability to see at near. Just think of all the people who could benefit from such a procedure.

We'll get there

What a thought, being able to truly rejuvenate vision! And provoking thought was just what we had in mind for this month's cover story. Now is the time for us to take notice of the efforts being made in presbyopia correction. It won't be long before our patients start posing questions about their options, if they haven't already. We'll need to have answers ready. We'll also need to start planning for how the new presbyopia procedures will fit into our practices.

So this month's article, Tomorrow's Practice Builder by Dr. Warren Cross, addresses several important issues, including whether presbyopia correction is a slam dunk for any practice and what we can do now to get the ball rolling. And what about these patients? They're a unique bunch, typically ages 45 to 60, so they share some characteristics with our cataract patients. But they're considering an elective surgery, which makes them a lot like our refractive patients. Will this group want to undergo the new procedures? Those in the know say yes.

So, hats off to the visionaries. Let's listen to the experts, and then head toward the new horizon, applying what we've learned to our thankful patients.