Today, the cataract surgery patient is more in the driver's seat then ever. In recent years the traditional model of surgeon patient relationship has changed. Media trends and the internet have combined to educate patients in ways that a surgeon never could. With increased patient education, the entire lens choice process is changing.

In the past, the surgeon alone was looked to in order to provide this information to the patient. Today, with the internet and "direct to consumer" medical advertising, patients are beginning to ask for certain medical procedures and devices by category, such as for an “Accommodating lens.”

For cataract surgery, this reality expresses itself in the lens choice area. There are many types of cataract lenses in use, monofocal, multifocal, accommodating and many more in the works. This leaves surgeons with a suite of items to discuss with their patients (*note not all surgeons use all lenses). At the same time, surgeons need to see a greater and greater number of patients each day to stay afloat. These two realities combine to give the patient a much larger role in the decision making process, due to multitude of options and diminishing office visit times. Many patients are left wondering "which cataract surgery lens is best?"

When consulting with your surgeon, it is important to ask for all options that are available to you (as opposed to all options that surgeon can provide). It is often wise to obtain a second opinion to confirm these options. It is important to realize that not all surgeons use all lenses, and some have “favorite” lenses they recommend to the majority of their patients, although this practice is less common these days. While these lenses may in fact be the best for you, there may also be other options that are better. A bit of research and a second opinion are often useful to help guide your choice.

It is very important to understand that each lens is very different, and most are only approved for certain situations. Some are very good for reading but have poor distance. Others have great distance vision, but have glare. It varies by lens and by patient. It is therefore very important to obtain all the information you can about each specific lens that the surgeon recommends to find the right lens for your needs. It is also important to communicate your lifestyle needs to your surgeon so that they take any specifics into account when choosing which lens is right.