Phakic lenses or implantable contact lenses (ICL / IPCL)

For patients who no longer want to be condemned to wearing contact lenses, but also do not qualify for laser vision correction for various reasons, modern medicine offers phakic lens implantation.

Implantable contact lenses ie. phakic lenses are implanted (implanted or as ophthalmologists say – “implanted”) between the iris and the natural lens. Figuratively speaking, they are “internal contact lenses” placed between the cornea and the patient’s own lens.

They correct nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism and even presbyopia – multifocal/EDOF lenses are available for presbyopia.

ICL implantable contact lenses, such as EVO + Visian ICL ™, can significantly improve the quality of vision. Unlike the previous ICL model, EVO + have a larger optical zonule/sphere, which guarantees less photophobia and better visual quality (optical quality) and vision after dark.

Modern EVO + Visian ICL ™ lenses are made of a material with properties very close to the natural lens of the eye, which makes them very well tolerated.

No corneal tissue is removed during the phakic lens “docking” procedure, and the lens itself can be removed at any time if necessary.

Anterior and posterior chamber lenses

Among phakic lenses, anterior chamber lenses and posterior chamber lenses are distinguished. Surgical correction of vision defects by focalization of anterior or posterior chamber phakic lens is a very good solution for active people in whom laser vision correction is not advisable or not possible.

Rear chamber EVO + Visian ICL ™ lenses

The big advantage of posterior chamber lenses is that they are not visible to other people. In addition, they do not need to be fixed, but are simply inserted into the posterior chamber – they are implanted behind the iris, into the patient’s own lens bag. The invisible posterior chamber of EVO + Visian ICL ™ is made of Collamer®, a biocompatible material created from collagen. It is very well tolerated by the eye.

Artisan/Artiflex anterior chamber lenses

Artisan and Artiflex anterior chamber lenses are implanted into the anterior chamber of the eye and fixated/attached to the iris (between the cornea and iris). The advantage of this type of procedure is its reversibility – the lens can be removed at any time without potentially permanently altering the structures of the eye.

Artisan lenses are constructed of a rigid material called PMMA, while Artiflex is made of retractable silicone. The retractable lens can be implanted into the eye through a smaller incision, so healing of the surgical wound and vision rehabilitation take place very quickly.

The Artisan lens is available in powers of -3 to -23.5 diopters, and the Artiflex lens is available in powers of -3 to -14.5 diopters.

It’s worth knowing that state-of-the-art phakic lenses were implanted in American soldiers and performed well in the toughest conditions!

IPCL – multifocal lens for the correction of presbyopia

The posterior chamber lens is not only suitable for younger patients to correct myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism, but is also an interesting alternative for presbyopic patients whose natural lens is still transparent (i.e. not cloudy, such as in cataracts, and retains its physiological properties) and who want to enjoy comfortable vision regardless of reading glasses or contact lenses.

If a patient develops cataracts, the natural lens can be removed at any time. Alternatively, just the inside of the natural lens of the eye can be replaced with a monofocal artificial lens so that the pajent can continue to use the IPCL multifocal lens.

In summary, implantable (graftable) lenses are recommended for the following cases of vision correction:

• When the dioptric to defect ratio does not match and the patient has too thin a cornea
• When it turns out that the cornea has an irregular structure and laser correction could jeopardize the stability of the corneal tissue
• In justified cases during the treatment of corneal cone
• In exceptional individual cases, when either lens replacement or laser correction is not advisable