Corneal Onlays in the News Again
I originally blogged about this in October of 2007, but that blog post was lost in June of 2009 when the "Yahoo360" blog host folded. I re-posted it here in 2009:
Oct 2007 Corneal Onlay Blog post
Anyway today they're back in the news, as the Flexvue Microlens has received "medical device registration approval" in both Israel and Brazil. I really think this is the future of eye care, even moreso than LASIK. Maybe I'm wrong but we'll see. IMO this has a lot of potential to change eye care:
Presbia Flexivue Microlens
The basics of onlays are...it would be a truly "implantable" contact lens. If you google "implantable contact lens" you get a result for something that is nothing like a corneal onlay. The device named "implantable contact lens" is an anterior chamber implant designed for high myopes, and its insertion & removal are fairly invasive procedures.
Conversely a corneal onlay is a MINIMALLY invasive & reversible procedure. Currently a laser "flap" is made just like in LASIK, but instead of using another laser to then permanently DESTROY corneal tissue, a super-thin "contact lens-like" implant is instead inserted into the corneal stroma. The result is...pretty much an implanted contact lens. Still only available as a monovision presbyopia correction, in the future it would be conceivably relatively easy to do just about any Rx like this.
Maybe I'm not well-enough educated on the subject, but I don't even see why one would REALLY need a laser flap (possibly b/c its easy & clean). In my mind corneal epithelium could be removed any number of ways (alcohol?), place the onlay, then bandage it with a traditional extended-wear soft contact & voila! Same result (?) That would make it a fairly affordable in-office procedure that a non-surgeon could feasibly perform. Maybe I'm dreaming here.
Regardless, this is a cool deal IMO.
Oct 2007 Corneal Onlay Blog post
Anyway today they're back in the news, as the Flexvue Microlens has received "medical device registration approval" in both Israel and Brazil. I really think this is the future of eye care, even moreso than LASIK. Maybe I'm wrong but we'll see. IMO this has a lot of potential to change eye care:
Presbia Flexivue Microlens
The basics of onlays are...it would be a truly "implantable" contact lens. If you google "implantable contact lens" you get a result for something that is nothing like a corneal onlay. The device named "implantable contact lens" is an anterior chamber implant designed for high myopes, and its insertion & removal are fairly invasive procedures.
Conversely a corneal onlay is a MINIMALLY invasive & reversible procedure. Currently a laser "flap" is made just like in LASIK, but instead of using another laser to then permanently DESTROY corneal tissue, a super-thin "contact lens-like" implant is instead inserted into the corneal stroma. The result is...pretty much an implanted contact lens. Still only available as a monovision presbyopia correction, in the future it would be conceivably relatively easy to do just about any Rx like this.
Maybe I'm not well-enough educated on the subject, but I don't even see why one would REALLY need a laser flap (possibly b/c its easy & clean). In my mind corneal epithelium could be removed any number of ways (alcohol?), place the onlay, then bandage it with a traditional extended-wear soft contact & voila! Same result (?) That would make it a fairly affordable in-office procedure that a non-surgeon could feasibly perform. Maybe I'm dreaming here.
Regardless, this is a cool deal IMO.
Hi, Dr. Mike, I'm just using this comment area to contact you. I'm an optometrist and a committed follower of Christ; I've been married to the same woman for 31 years; we have two college kids; I like progressive rock, having seen Emerson, Lake & Palmer in concert twice, and Yes, innumerable times; I play bass in my church's praise band; etc. etc. So, naturally, seeing this about you in your blog and practice web site, I was intrigued:
ReplyDeleteChristian, husband, father, optometrist, guitar rocker...in that order
Favorite Music: praise & worship, prog rock, classic rock
plays bass in his church's praise band
as all that could easily be about me~!
But I'm just a lot older!
Here's my website, where you'll see me and my wife, Monica:
www.drpeteranderson.com
my email address is eyerock36@gmail.com
Cheers!
hey! that's cool! wow, agreed a lot of similarities! what kind of bass are you rockin'? I have been switching between my squier 5-string deluxe active jazz and my new-to-me 4-string pawn-shop-rescue Memphis P-bass.
ReplyDeletethanks for the note! rock on for Jesus!