Steen - Hall Eye Institute News
Shreveport Times Newspaper: Friday, April 23,
2004
By Alisa Stingley
The eyes have it: Baby boomers seeking new procedure
Rachel Bynog was fed up with that emblem of baby-boomer
aging: reading glasses.
"My glasses bothered me," said the 49-year-old Keithville
resident. "They drove me crazy. I was constantly taking them
off ... and then I would have to go and hunt for my
glasses."
But when Bynog learned about a procedure to correct
near-vision problems due to aging, she saw her doctor, found
she was a candidate for the procedure and had it done.
"I don't wear glasses anymore," she said. "When the cell
phone rings, I can see who it is. I can read nutrition
labels. I can read my Bible -- thank the Lord."
The nonlaser procedure developed by Refractec Inc. is called
conductive keratoplasty -- CK for short -- and it's fast
becoming popular among local baby boomers who have trouble
reading up close but no other vision problems, a condition
called presbyopia. Since the Food and Drug Administration
approved CK for presbyopia in March, publicity about CK has
spurred inquiries from fortysomethings and older hoping to
turn back the clock, at least vision-wise.
"I think it will be very, very popular," said Dr. Donald
Hall, who performs
CK at Steen-Hall Eye Institute in
Shreveport.
"It has just taken off here in Shreveport. We're
just in the cusp of it. We get busier every month."
Some patients have heard about CK from news reports but
mostly CK has spread by word of mouth, Hall said. "People
have it done and they are so excited with it, they are happy
to share their experiences."
CK changes how the eye focuses light by reshaping the
surface of the cornea. But it doesn't use lasers like LASIK.
Instead, a controlled release of radio frequency energy is
used to heat and shrink cornea tissue to allow proper focus
again.
 And it takes less than five minutes, is done in a treatment
room at the doctor's office, requires only topical
anesthetic and patients miss just a day or two of work. They
go home with some drops to help with post-procedure
discomfort, which is described as like having an eyelash in
your eye or a scratchy sensation, though that goes away.
Cost at Steen-Hall: $1,250 per eye (usually only one is
done). Most insurance does not cover the procedure.
"It's done for people over 40 who have normal distance
vision without glasses," said Hall. "They don't like those
reading glasses. You commonly see them with glasses on
chains around their necks. These are people who had normal
vision all their lives, then in their 40s had an aging
change that takes away their magnifying ability. This is
designed for them."
Steen-Hall has performed CK on 33 patients since December,
Hall said. Before March, CK was approved for treating
farsightedness, which is different from presbyopia.
Elizabeth Cantrell, 57, of Shreveport, had become frustrated
with not being able to read close up, especially since her
job at Tracker Marine at Bass Pro Shops requires her to do
title work.
"I got to where I couldn't read price tags in stores without
my glasses," she said. "If I didn't have my glasses with me,
I'd have to ask sales people, 'How much is this?'"
She underwent CK last Friday. During the procedure she felt
a "little bit of pressure" but only for a split second.
Afterward, she had some discomfort that day, which she
described as if someone had thrown sand in her eye. As of
Tuesday Cantrell said she still had some blurriness, which
is expected to go away within a week or so, but she could
now read price tickets.
"I think it's amazing," Cantrell said.
The change is immediate, patients say. Jeanine Soderstrom,
50, of Keithville said "right when I came out, they had me
read a menu."
And she could.
Generally, though, it takes several weeks for vision to
reach its optimum level of correction. Soderstrom, who had
the procedure in February, is pleased with the results.
Before, "I had reading glasses in every room," she said.
Now? "They're stuffed in drawers." |
