Issue 17.10
Cataract surgery is a commonly performed surgery in which the natural human lens is removed because it has become clouded and is interfering with a patient’s vision. The clouding of the natural lens occurs with aging mainly and is unavoidable. Most patients over 65 years of age will have some degree of cataracts but it can occur at any age.
Fortunately, cataract surgery has evolved over many years with advancements in technology that have made it the most successful surgery performed in medicine today.
The Dixie Ophthalmic Specialists at Zion Eye Institute has remained at the forefront of new technology being the first to implant the Blue Blocker Lens for added protection of the retina, the ReStor Multifocal Lens, the Crystalens accommodating lens, and recently introducing the Infinity Vision System, which is a new, advanced method for removing cataracts. To add to this, Jason Ahee, M.D., a leading expert in cataract surgery and medical director of Zion Eye Institute, is now the first surgeon in southern Utah, and among the first in the country to perform Micro-Incision Cataract Surgery (MICS).
MICS involves performing cataract surgery through very tiny, microscopic incisions at the edge of the cornea. This makes the surgery safer and minimizes trauma to the eye. It helps maintain a more natural state of the eye during cataract removal and allows for faster recovery. “With our new Infinity Vision System, we are able to reduce our incision size by over 20% compared with the current standard cataract incisions,” said Dr. Ahee. “By minimizing the incision size we keep better control of the intraocular environment during surgery while preventing surgically induced astigmatism and, ultimately achieving better outcomes for our patients.”
Dr. Ahee is in private practice with Dixie Ophthalmic Specialists at Zion Eye Institute and is an Assistant Clinical Professor of ophthalmology at University of Utah Moran Eye Center.