MandysMom wrote:[quote still haven't had the cataract surgery I was going to get last March. The sedation is the thing that has me hesitant. It apparently doesn't put you out you just don't remember. Did you get the lens where you can see near, far and close and if so how do you like it and what is it called It's been so long that I've forgotten a lot of what I read and that you told me last year. Also what brand of tear drops do you use? I know I have to do something soon as there are times when the sun is going down I can't drive and of course can't drive after dark]
BJ, remember, you can ask for no sedation. I guess not all Drs would agree, but mine did. Tell them why you don't want it. Also make sure they are using drops, not injection for anesthesia. There are a few old fashioned Drs who use injection and thre is no way I was going to let a Dr insert a long needle beside my eye!
As to drops, I like Refresh Plus little plastic pods or Refresh Optive pods. There are others out there that are preservative free. 3 different Drs said, the ones with preservative potentially slow healing. They are pricier, but worth it until healed. freshkote is another but harder to find .
I chose multifocal IOLs-intra ocular lens implants.medicare pays for the surgery and for standard IOLs which are single focus so close or mid or distance, but you can apply the amount Medicare pays and pay difference for upgrade. I never had issues with bi or trifocals so knew I'd adjust to multi vocals and that was easy for me. I'm very happy I saved up to do that. My IOLs are PanOptix Toric ( for astigmatism). Cost me just under $3000 per eye as I included laser correction of astigmatism. I had severe astigmatism and was very nearsighted. I got rid of most astigmatism between laser and Toric IOLs and can see very tiny print as long as I have good light and as long as i pay attention to not letting eyes get dry, which sometimes happens toward end of day. As i think i mentioned, multifocals need a bit more light to push the image through to the retina or processing. My phone I can read and distance is great. Middle is very good. They told me I have about 20/15 left and very close to 20/20 right after the scar removal which helped. I have no problem grabbing a little flash light for very tiny print, I gained so much, this compromise is fine.
Velda
Velda[/quote]
Thank you Velda! I had asked for the multifocal and the added cost was about the same as yours. When I asked about the sedation they said I would need to talk to the anesthesiologist when I went for the surgery. Not a good answer. There aren't many places here where they do the surgery and at all but one, the surgeons come certain days of the week from other towns. I think I need to see if that has changed any during the year.