Dr. James Schumer, founder and medical director of ReVision LASIK and Cataract Surgery in Mansfield and Columbus, uses this same analogy when talking to his patients about their quality of vision after cataract surgery.
“When the lens inside of our eye begins to cloud, it occurs over years, and so it sneaks up on patients. They don’t realize what they’re missing until overnight it’s gone, and then it’s like ‘Oh, I can’t believe (the difference).’ That’s the most common reaction that we get,” says Schumer. “Our brains are so adaptive.”
Impacting Patients
Schumer says that the best part of his job, aside from learning and sharing new forms of technology in ophthalmology, is seeing people react to their newfound quality of sight. One patient, in particular, Patty Benedict, 65, was blown away by the drastic difference in her vision after Schumer performed 3D laser cataract surgery.
“Not only did the world come back into focus with clarity, but it is as if someone out there in the universe dialed up the dimmer switch on light. Everything is brighter,” says Benedict. “I am amazed each day when I wake up to such a bright and clear world. My husband is getting sick of hearing about it!”
Benedict didn’t wear eyeglasses until she was in her mid-40s when she began using non-prescription glasses to read. Her vision continued to regress to the point where she eventually needed trifocals. With each passing year, Benedict’s prescription changed and dissatisfaction with her vision grew.
“I was forced to move my head constantly in search of that ‘sweet spot’ in the three fields (of vision) that my lenses provided; the eyeglass frame interfered with my peripheral vision; and sometimes I stumbled and stubbed a toe or knocked into something with a knee because I misjudged the depth of my path, a hazard of looking through the wrong field of the trifocal,” says Benedict. “Naturally, as I aged and cataracts began to form, light glare and general fading of clarity added to the problems. I decided to end the madness.”
Working Smarter, Not Harder
The technological advancements in the last 20 years have significantly changed cataract surgery. Schumer says that it went from a risky, intensive procedure involving large incisions, multiple sutures, and a difficult healing process, to a simpler, brief surgery typically with a little recovery time. He added that when he completed his training in 1993, cataract surgery looked completely different and they couldn’t even dream of the technology available today.
Schumer says he is proud to be an early adopter of new technology: ReVision was the second facility in the U.S. to invest in the 3D surgery platform. Pair the 3D features with a femtosecond laser, which has a pulse duration of 10 to the minus sixteenth of a second, and you get an accurate surgery that’s minimally invasive.
“I usually use numbing drops only to numb the eye, there’s no needle or shot injection. The incisions are made by a laser; they’re so tiny there’s no stitches and usually, I don’t even put a patch on the eye when we’re done,” says Schumer. “ There are minimal restrictions that a patient has afterward with the biggest being no swimming for a week. It’s not because water is bad, I just don’t want them getting into bugs and bacteria.”
The 3D surgical platform means that instead of having to bend forward and look through a microscope for the entire surgery, Schumer can sit upright in a chair and look at a flat screen monitor to guide the positioning of synthetic intra-ocular lenses. Patients can now choose from a variety of these lenses to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.
Types of Intra-Ocular Lenses
- Standard Monofocal: A standard lens implant provides one set distance of focus (far, middle or near). Those with monofocal lens implants usually require eyeglasses after cataract surgery for a full range of vision.
- Lifestyle Lens: There are a variety of premium lens options including lenses designed to flex like the eye’s natural lens; multifocal lenses designed to see near, intermediate and distance; as well as toric lenses designed to treat astigmatism.
Seeing the Difference
Benedict and her husband Dan are active and enjoy traveling often, seeing their grandkids and appreciating nature’s beauty. Since her eyeglasses got in the way of doing some of those more involved activities, Benedict opted to get multifocal lenses when she had her cataract surgery. Now she is free of frames and ready for just about anything.
“My husband and I are full-time RVers. We are all over the place, but we spend our summers in Mansfield to be close to our family and grandkids,” says Benedict. “Any time that there is anything going on outdoors, I want to play the game; I want to be involved.”
Beyond spending this summer walking and cycling on the Mansfield bike path with their grandkids, the Benedicts plan to explore some of the national parks out west this winter.
“This year we are planning to go to New Mexico. It’s the land of enchantment. The scenery there is majestic,” says Benedict.
The views are sure to be even more memorable with Benedict’s improved sense of sight. She notes that seeing the world in a brighter light has heightened more than just her vision.
“When I wake up and the whole world is brighter, it does lift your mood and you have a heightened sense of joy for life,” says Benedict. “I trusted Dr. Schumer with, besides life itself, one of the most precious things I possess: my eyes. I am so glad I did.”
Jenny Wise is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
