Clear vision for better testing

A Yorkshire eye surgeon has pioneered a new technique to help people with sight problems.

Humberside-based Milind Pande devised the new vision measurement system to better work out people’s day to day vision problems.

And one of the first to benefit is 51-year-old Josette Riley who now has the sight of a 21-year-old.

Mrs Riley who lives in Skipsea, had worn glasses from being a small child as she suffered from eye problems such as amblyopia, better known as ‘lazy eye’ and had very poor eyesight needing very thick spectacles.

So she was no stranger to all manner of glasses and tests throughout her life to strengthen her eyes and vision.

Mum of two, Josette, who works as a secretary at a local GP surgery, visited Mr Pande, consultant eye surgeon at the Vision Surgery and Research Centre in Hull, and he recommended lens exchange surgery.

This involves her own lenses being removed and replaced with a bespoke combination of powerful lenses to correct her vision.

But the key to success for Josette’s eyes was in the crucial vision measurement prior to treatment.

Josette’s sight was measured using Mr Pande’s own vision measurement technique called ‘Panfocal Vision’.

This is a technique he has pioneered which includes measuring a patient’s vision at distances needed for a range of everyday tasks from reading a book, newspaper, mobile phone or using an iPad, to watching TV and driving.

This way he is able to measure the patient’s lifestyle requirements exactly and recommend a customised combination of lenses, to achieve seamless vision from close to far.

“There is no point being able to read the test chart in the clinic but having problems seeing day to day,” says Mr Piland.

“Panfocal Vision is a new way to accurately measure your vision in day-to-day life.”

Mr Pande devised the new measurement technique for use prior to undertaking vision correction surgery like Josette’s.

He has recently lectured on the new technique at the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery in Chicago, European Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgeons in Milan and at the UK & Ireland Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgeons Congress, addressing some of the most senior ophthalmic consultants in the world.

“I don’t know why I waited so long, the results are incredible and at last I can see better than I have ever done in my life,”says Josette.

“Mr Pande and his team were amazing. I never felt any pressure to proceed with the treatment and Mr Pande’s calm approach really helped. I couldn’t have been in safer hands and every member of his team was professional, extremely knowledgeable and friendly – a very important combination when you are having eye surgery.”

Commenting on her treatment, Mr Pande said: “The difference between having the vision treatment which Josette had and standard lens exchange treatments is that the overall result is ‘seamless vision’ without the gaps that can be common with using multi-focal lenses.

“Because we measure functional vision rather than a simple chart, we are able to predict the outcome accurately and get our patients the best possible vision without glasses.”

Josette concluded: “Mr Pande’s reputation is excellent so I didn’t feel I needed to worry in the slightest.

“My eyes were each done on separate occasions and each time, the entire process was completed within half a day. He refines the prescription to the nth degree and now I have the vision of a much younger person.

“It truly is staggering. The results really are life-changing. In fact, every day I still have to pinch myself.”

Almost everyone gets a cataract in their lifetime but Josette has the added bonus that after this treatment she will never develop a cataract, removing the need for a cataract operation in her future.

For more information or to book a free suitability assessment or a consultation, call 01482 339515 or visit www.visionsurgery.co.uk

Surgeon behind new technique

Milind Pande heads the Vision Surgery & Research Centre. He initially trained in Yorkshire prior to taking up the prestigious Iris Fund Research Fellowship at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London.

He was a lecturer at Oxford University before joining the Hull Royal Infirmary as a consultant ophthalmologist. His innovative work in the fields of refractive cataract surgery, lens exchange surgery, laser vision surgery is well recognised throughout the profession, whether it is organising the annual state of the art Refractive and Cataract Surgery Symposium in Hull, running a surgical workshop in India or lecturing in China, Europe, Africa or America. He is the current President of the United Kingdom and Ireland Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons, and is on the laser eye surgery committee of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists.