Reading Glasses Alternative: Solution for Presbyopia

By the time you reach age 40, you may begin to notice that your reading vision is starting to decline. It’s a gradual process that makes reading things like restaurant menus, text messages, labels, books, etc., increasingly difficult. Wearing reading glasses can help, but not everyone is thrilled about embracing this obvious sign of aging.

The Condition is Presbyopia

If this sounds like your situation, you are developing presbyopia. It’s not a refractive error like farsightedness. Instead it’s caused by your eye lens becoming less flexible which makes it harder to focus on up close objects. It happens to almost everyone as they age – even those who have always had 20/20 vision and those who have had vision correction in the past. There is no way to prevent it.

Raindrop to the Rescue

At Rosenbaum Eye & Laser Center, we often recommend the Raindrop® Near Vision Inlay for patients who want to reduce or eliminate their need for reading glasses.

The Raindrop Near Vision Inlay is a small, very thin, virtually transparent inlay made of 80% water that is surgically placed within the first few layers of the cornea (the clear front of the eye) in your non-dominant eye. The inlay gently alters the curvature of the cornea, making it steeper so the eye regains up-close focus. Your dominant eye is left untreated so you retain a full range of vision.

Surgery & Recovery for Raindrop

The surgery only takes approximately 20 minutes. Because your eye is numbed, most patients do not experience any pain. After surgery, we recommend you go home and rest for the remainder of the day.

Most patients can return to normal activities and work within 24-48 hours. The risk of complications will be greatly reduced if you follow your doctor’s post-op instructions carefully. Complications and temporary side effects can include:

• Halos or glare
• Dry eye
• Blurred vision
• Double vision
• Contrast sensitivity
• Pain
• Burning
• Infection
• Inflammation

Vision Results with Raindrop

Some patients will have some vision improvement within one week while others may experience a longer vision stabilization period. It is important to be patient with this process and let the inlay do its job.

In clinical studies, most Raindrop patients could read the equivalent of:

• A newspaper with 20/40 vision or better (98%)
• Fine print with 20/25 vision or better (88%)
• Email on a computer screen with 20/25 vision or better (76%)

Free Consultation

Are you ready to find out if your reading vision might improve after the Raindrop Near Vision Inlay? Contact Rosenbaum Eye & Laser Center today to schedule a free Consultation to learn more about this reading glasses alternative in Michigan.