Apr 12 2010
Crystalens®, the only FDA-approved accommodating intraocular lens (IOL), will celebrate its tenth anniversary at the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) Annual Meeting in Boston.
Crystalens®
The first Crystalens was implanted in an FDA clinical trial in 2000. The FDA approved the Crystalens in 2003, and today over 200,000 Crystalens have been implanted worldwide.
Broadway, film and TV actress Florence Henderson recently opted to use Crystalens in her cataract surgery, and she will share her experiences with surgeons at the Bausch + Lomb booth (#714) on Sunday, April 11, at 1 p.m., during the tenth anniversary celebration. Ms. Henderson is best known for her role as Carol Brady in the iconic television series "The Brady Bunch," which ran on network television from 1969 to 1974 and continues in syndication today. She has enjoyed a storied entertainment career that has spanned five decades.
"The Crystalens has changed the face of vision correction. We have given thousands of patients not only a way to correct their cataracts but the ability to see better at all distances. We are pleased to be taking a moment during the ASCRS meeting to celebrate this ground-breaking lens. We are also very excited to have Florence Henderson join us," said Andy Corley, global president, Surgical, Bausch + Lomb.
"I'm very happy to share my Crystalens experiences with these wonderful eye surgeons. I'm looking forward to meeting many of them. Like many of their patients, I'm very pleased to have experienced such a dramatic improvement in my vision since my Crystalens surgery," said Ms. Henderson.
During the celebration of the Crystalens on Sunday in Boston, Bausch + Lomb will also honor 12 surgeons who have implanted over 1,000 Crystalens lenses.
"Ten years ago, when I implanted the first Crystalens in North America, I thought the lens was going to help the plus-50-year-old patient's vision in a way that we couldn't before. I'm very proud to have been part of the Crystalens success story from the very beginning," said Dr. Stephen Slade of the Slade & Baker Vision Center in Houston, Texas.
Approximately 3 million cataract surgeries are performed in the U.S. every year. A cataract is a clouding on the normally clear lens in the eye. When it forms, the natural lens in the patient's eye is replaced by an intraocular lens. Research indicates that only a small fraction of people realize that not all intraocular lenses are the same. The research also indicates that a number of patients are willing to pay a little extra money in order to get the best quality vision.
Crystalens is the only FDA-approved accommodating intraocular lens. Unlike the standard cataract replacement lenses, Crystalens is designed to not only eliminate the patient's cataract but also to give the patient full range of vision so that the patient can see near, far and everything in between. Many Crystalens patients hardly if ever need their glasses or contacts again.