CRYSTALENS® IOL vs. CK

By Michele Boyer

If you are considering corrective eye surgery as a way to treat presbyopia, a thorough screening by a qualified surgeon is a must. Finding qualified eye surgeons means identifying those who have plenty of experience performing a variety of cataract and laser eye surgeries and who will provide you with statistics about their practice that are well within the standards and guidelines established by the FDA. Find out what diagnostic testing they will do to determine your specific surgical needs and type of surgery that is best for you.

With so many choices of ways to improve your vision, deciding which method is best for you can be confusing. Two methods are compared here – CRYSTALENS and CK or Near Vision CK.
CRYSTALENS® is a brand of accommodating intraocular lens (IOL) used in lens implant procedures to treat cataract surgery. Some eye surgeons also use the Crystalens to treat presbyopia. See Accommodating IOLs for comparisons of various advanced IOLs. An accommodating IOL adjusts for near and distant vision as an alternative to monovision procedures.

CK or Near Vision CK is the only FDA approved procedure for treating presbyopia. CK or Conductive Keratoplasty uses radio waves, rather than a laser, to reshape the cornea, to reduce farsightedness. When CK is performed in only one eye it can be used to create monovision. With monovision a predetermined amount of nearsightedness is produced the non-dominant eye, while the dominant eye is left uncorrected and used for distance vision. The brain automatically adapts focus within a few weeks. The main advantage of CK monovision is freedom from the need for reading glasses. The main disadvantage is that the effects will diminish over time, which can be as long as several years. Also, depth perception may be diminished because the eyes are no longer working together to provide a stereographic view.

Please click here to see a chart clarifies the major differences between CRYSTALENS and CK.