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O P H T H A L M O L O G Y
The small device —
about 3 inches deep
and a foot long —
attaches to the surgical microscope. It
takes aphakic readings, reads the amount
and axis of astigmatism, and measures
the posterior corneal
surface.
HYPE MACHINE Femtosecond laser surgery offers the
Before using intraop- promise of safer, repeatable outcomes. It also has a
"wow" factor that patients love.
erative aberrometry,
Dr. Stephenson says
she overcorrected the lens placement in some of her patients because
they didn't have as much astigmatism as she thought they had.
The imaging upgrade is used on patients willing to pay for her premium Toric IOL packages, which she says most do. "It has really
raised the bar for me, because I'm getting LASIK-like results," she
says, noting that 97% of outcomes are within a half-diopter of her targets and 75% are within a quarter diopter, a rate she calls "pretty
damn good."
Dr. Stephenson also emphasizes that the latest surgical microscopes
provide incredible views that improve surgeons' abilities to perform
capsule polishing and watch how incisions are made to ensure they're
well sealed and the architecture is appropriate for whatever implant
they're using.
Dr. Stonecipher says cataract surgery volumes are increasing
because of the growing numbers of diabetics and post-refractive
patients who come back for vision tune-ups so they can see as well as
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O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | O C T O B E R 2013
