David O'Reilly

Dave O'Reilly, 45, is an active father living with his partner Julie and two children aged 6 and 7 years in the New Forest, Hampshire where he works as a Process Supervisor in the oil industry. He'd worn glasses from the age of 10 and it was really beginning to have a huge impact on his busy life. From a young age, his sight deteriorated more and more until he became extremely short sighted with a minus 9 diopters condition and astigmatisim in the left eye and a minus 11 diopters case of myopia (short sightedness) in the right eye. He totally relied on glasses from the moment he got out of bed, as he really couldn't see much at all without them.

He did wear contacts lenses for a few years, but due to the astigmatism, he was prescribed toric lenses which are weighted and took a fraction of time to settle every time he blinked, which was pretty disconcerting.

He also really struggled on bright days as he couldn't wear sunglasses. But one of the things that really upset Dave the most was not being able to see his children when he was swimming with them and wasn't wearing his glasses. They all love swimming together as a family so it really became a pretty big issue for Dave.

So he started to do some research to see if anything could be done to help him. He went to see a few companies who said they could help but he didn't feel 100% happy with the feedback he got. Eventually he came across Optegra and Mr Morris, one of their leading eye surgeons. And after his initial 'no obligation' consultation at Optegra's state of the art hospital in Guildford (Surrey Eye Hospital), Dave just knew he was in a very good and safe pair of hands.

The treatment - AcrySof® Cachet" Lens
Mr Morris advised Dave of all the options available to him, discussing each one in great detail. Due to the condition of his eyes, corrective laser eye surgery was not an option for Dave, so he eventually agreed to go ahead with implantable contact lens surgery using the AcrySof® Cachet" Lens. This lens is designed to reduce or eliminate moderate to high nearsightedness in adults. So if the eye condition is worse than minus 6 diopters, this special lens can deliver greater freedom from glasses or contact lenses.

The lens sits in the front (anterior) chamber of the eye, between the iris and cornea and is designed to improve vision by working with the existing natural lens. It's made of a soft, flexible material designed specifically for the eye, which allows it to be folded and inserted through a small incision. Once implanted, it unfolds and is held in place by tiny flexible supports that keep the lens in place once inserted, but do not attach to the eye so it can be removed if necessary.

Since the operation, my life has changed beyond belief, commented Dave. My vision is excellent. I don't have to bother with glasses but I have treated myself to three pairs of sunglasses! Waking up to see clearly is simply unbelievable and being able to enjoy swimming with my kids again is fantastic. I just can't praise Optegra enough and I would recommend all of their four eye hospitals, particularly the new Solent Eye Hospital to my local friends and colleagues - and this operation to anyone with a similar problem to me.

For more information on how the AcrySof® Cachet" Lens could benefit you, please contact us.

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