Advanced Lens Implants Last Forever!

More and more of our SkyVision patients are choosing Advanced Lifestyle intraocular lens implants (IOL's) for their cataract surgeries. Not only are they getting better and better vision, but following their surgeries they can see almost everything they need to see WITHOUT ANY GLASSES!! We have also noticed a trend toward people opting to have their surgies at a younger age so that they can enjoy their improved, glasses-free vision for a longer time.

This of course has prompted people to start to ask how long will their implants last? It turns out that the new, advanced IOL's that help people to see better without glasses last just as long as the Basic High-Tech implants we have been using for decades. Dr. White is fond of saying that "[your] lens implants will outlive you by several thousand years!"

If you have a cataract and need to have surgery you don't have to worry about your IOL "wearing out". They pretty much last forever! The two questions you need to ask yourself remain the same as they've always been. When do I want to see better? Do I want to be freer from the need to wear glasses after my cataract surgery?

If the answers are "now" and "yes" you can rest assurred that your IOL's will likely last forever!

Eye Doc Education 3.0!

This evening the doctors of SkyVision Centers will be hosting their 3rd educational seminar for local eye doctors. The first two seminars were rousing successes and we expect nothing less tonight. Each session has included two talks by either our very own SkyVision docs or invited guests. The topics covered have included the new Tear Osmolarity technology and Cataract Implants for Astigmatism among others. In addition, the two meetings have included very interesting dinner fare!

Attendees at 1.0 were treated to an Italian feast with accompanying Italian wines, while 2.0 featured artisinal pizza and Brew Kettle beer brewed especially for the meeting!

Tonight the speakers will be Dr. Darrell White and Dr. Scott Schlegel. Dr. White will introduce the concept of "service lines" in the development of protocols to diagnose, treat, and follow specific diseases in "Glaucoma Protocol Development I". Dr. Schlegel will be tackling the subject of introducing a patient with cataracts to the choices they will face when then are trying to decide what type of Intra-Ocular lens to use for their surgery.

What about dinner? Well, tonight we will be serving Mexican! Their will be a fajita bar with all of the fixin's, traditional Mexican cookies, and of course something interesting to wash it all down! We are all looking forward to seeing our friends in the eye care community as we gather to improve our collective understanding of how best to treat our patients.

No Longer Struggling to See! A Satisfied Cataract Patient's story . . . .

Thank you for your kind words Dr. Palma!



I went to Skyvision this past fall for what I believed to be a routine eye exam to update my prescription for glasses and contact lenses. I definitely couldn't see as well as I used to. The staff was professional and friendly as always (my kids go there too).

Initially I saw Dr. Kaye who was concerned about my vision and ordered further tests. After lengthy testing, Dr. White made the comment that I was really "struggling to see". It turned out I had a cataract.... not something I wanted to hear being less than 50 yrs old. During my evaluation for cataract surgery I met with Dr. Schlegel who explained every aspect of surgery. He answered all of my questions, reassured me everything would be ok, and that they had done the intraocular lens implant surgery frequently.

I chose the multifocal intraocular lens so I would not need glasses to see up close. The day of the surgery I went to the outpatient surgery center. The staff there was just as professional and friendly as at Skyvision. The surgery took just a few minutes and I left 1/2 hr after surgery. Two weeks later, the other eye was done.

Today I am NOT "struggling to see". Dr. White gave me the incredible gift of sight! I cannot thank the doctors and staff at Skyvision enough for my special care. Recently my husband told me that he was so impressed with the care I received that he was going to switch to Skyvision!


Gabriella Palma, M.D.

The Wonders of Cataract Surgery!

Skyvision Centers in Westlake is Cleveland's leading eyecare center for advanced cataract surgery! Does someone in your family have cataracts? Have YOU been told that you have cataracts? Cataract surgery is the single most frequently performed operation in the United States. It is among the safest and most successful surgeries there is. A recent article in a medical journal found that 98.2% of patients surveyed in a study were satisfied with their results and their medical management with their cataract surgery!

Cataract surgery is very gentle surgery. Our surgeon, Dr. Darrell White, does your surgery with you awake with just a little bit of sedation; this is safer for you medically and actually better for Dr. White, too. The surgery itself is typically pain free and you go home very shortly after the operation is over. A few eyedrops each day and a very few minor restrictions on your activity for a little bit are all that is usually involved afterwards.

You even have some choices with your cataract surgery. You can choose when you will have to wear glasses after the surgery with your choice of lens implants or IOL's. If you choose one of our advanced Lifestyle IOL's for both sharp distance vision and reading vision you might NOT WEAR GLASSES AT ALL!

So if you or someone you know in the Cleveland area has been told that they have cataracts give us a call at Skyvision Centers in Weslake for COMPLETE CATARACT CARE!

Over 40 Eyes

My arms are too short! I need more light to read! I never had to wear glasses for my entire life -- why do I have to wear glasses now?!

Over 40 eyes, otherwise known as presbyopia, is what happens to us when we get older. Even people who have had perfect vision of the course of their life we'll eventually need some help seen things up close. It's just a part of getting older, as natural as a teenage boy growing out of his sneakers. The only way to avoid it is to check out, and that's pretty lousy strategy!

When we focus on things up close three things happen. First, our eyes come closer together. Next, our pupils get smaller. Finally, the lens inside our eyes gets fatter. The whole process is called accommodation. We accommodate to see things up close throughout our entire life. Kids have massive powers of accommodation, but we slowly lose this power as we get older.

Somewhere in our late 30s or early 40s the muscles inside our eyes get a little weaker in the lens inside our eyes gets a little harder. This makes it more difficult for us to see things up close. People who are hyperopic, or farsighted, actually have to use their powers of accommodation for all of their vision, even seen things a mile away. Folks like this often end up in reading glasses much earlier than the rest of us.

So what do we do? Well, even we wear those cheapo glasses we buy the drugstore, or we get a personalized pair of reading glasses, or we wear bifocals (See Here)! Some of us even choose to have surgery, replacing our natural lenses with implants like the Crystalens. We'll talk lots more about this as time goes on.

So if you are having trouble reading this maybe you should come see us at Skyvision Centers!