SAN DIEGO — A transparent hydrogel corneal inlay is a novel way to correct the vision of patients with pseudophakic presbyopia, a new study shows.
"The Raindrop inlay improved near and intermediate vision significantly," said Dan Tran, MD, an ophthalmologist in Orange, California, who presented the finding here at the World Cornea Congress.
Current solutions for improving pseudophakic presbyopia have their drawbacks, explained Dr Tran.
The monovision technique can cause a lack of depth perception or imbalanced vision if the difference between corrections of the eyes is too great. And if the difference is too small, the technique can be insufficient to correct vision.
In addition, intraocular lenses can cause halos, glare, and loss of contrast, or lack a full range of vision.
A corneal implant could be an effective alternative, said Dr Tran.
The Raindrop inlay is similar to the cornea in terms of water content and refractive index. It is implanted at one-third the corneal thickness, and centered over the light-constricted pupil. "It's fairly easy to remove by just lifting the flap and removing the inlay," he said.
The strongest curvature is in the central region, providing near vision. The curvature gradually decreases toward the periphery, creating regions that provide intermediate and distance vision.
