ICL – the Implantable Contact Lens

The ICL is the appropriate method for patients with a very high refractive error or a too thin cornea.

The Invisible Lens

People who have very high refractive errors or thin corneas, are typically not suitable for a laser eye treatment. However, they still want a life without glasses or contacts. With the ICL, a phakic intraocular lens, EuroEyes can offer an excellent alternative treatment for nearsighted patients with a diopter higher than -8, and for farsighted patients with a diopter higher than +3 –even if the refractive error is combined with astigmatism.

Contrary to a contact lens, the ICL will remain permanently in the eye. It is positioned between iris and the natural lens. In cooperation with your natural lens, the ICL thereby ensures that the light is correctly focused on the cornea, making it possible for the patient to once again see clearly.

The Treatment with the Implantable Contact Lens – Step by Step:

The surgery is a routine out-patient procedure that approx. lasts 10 minutes per eye. Prior to the procedure, anesthetic eye drops are applied to ensure a painfree treatment

The ICL lens i a clear synthetic lens, similar to a contact lens. Because it is so small and soft, it is very foldable, and can easily be inserted into the eye with an injector within seconds – through a small incision in the cornea will be made where the iris meets with the white of the eye. To protect the inside of the cornea, a gel-like substance is injected.

Unlike a contact lens, the ICL is placed in the posterior chamber, between iris and the natural lens. The ICL stays here permanently and is neither visible for others nor noticable for you. In cooperation with the natural lens, the ICL makes sure that the light is accurately focused on the retina, which corrects the vision disorder. After the treatment the patient can once again see clearly – without glasses or contacts.

Treating Your Vision Disorder with an ICL has Many Advantages:

Treats nearsightedness and farsightedness in combination with astigmatism in a single step
Fast and painless out-patient routine procedure
The lens is not noticable in any way
The ICL lens is very well-tolerated has excellent biocompatibility
Excellent quality of vision

1. Personal, Non-binding Consultation About How Best to Treat Your Vision Disorder

All relevant eye parameters are measured.
Examine your eyes to make sure you are a suitable candidate for the ICL treatment

2. A Thorough Medical Preliminary Examination

The examination usually lasts about two hours
Intensive ophthalmic preliminary examination and measurement of your eyes
Our Specialists in ophthalmology will explain every detail about the treatment
Before this preliminary examination you should not have worn soft contact lenses for one week and hard contact lenses for two weeks
Please note that after the examination you will not be safe driving a vehicle–neither car, nor motorcycle or bicycle. We therefore recommend that you take a cab or public transportation
At the examination you will receive an after-care set for the days after your treatment. The medication and content will be explained in detail by our staff

3. On the Day of the ICL Treatment

We recommend that you wear comfortable clothes on the day of treatment
If possible, please bring someone to accompany you
You can eat and drink normally on the treatment day, but please do not smoke
For hygiene reasons, it is also important that you wash your face thoroughly prior to treatment, completely remove makeup, and avoid perfume
We will be happy to provide you with a mild sedative prior to the treatment
The eye that is being treated receives anesthetic eye drops
The total duration of the out-patient surgery will approximately be 10-15 minutes per eye
The treated eye is protected by an eye bandage until the next day
Note: We usually schedule an interval of 1-2 days between treatment of both eyes
You are not allowed to drive a vehicle after the procedure

4. After the Lens Surgery

Please do not rub your eyes
Eye drops should be applied multiple times every day following the medical instructions
Artificial tears as required
Return to work after 2-4 days
Resume sports activities after approximately 3 days, swimming and sauna should be avoided in the beginning
Post-operative follow-up examinations: after 1 day – 1 week – 1 month – 3 months
You may drive a vehicle again only with the doctor's permission

The Development of the ICL Lens

The implantable contact lens (ICL) is the result of years of research and development, and has been on the market since 1993With an ICL not only nearsightedness or farsightedness can be corrected, but also astigmatism. The thouroughly tested procedure is also approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

These innovative lens implants have led to an immense advancement within lens surgery. Today, the ICL lens is the pioneer of lenses that are implanted as an addition to the natural lens. The results are outstanding. EuroEyes offers a wide variety of the latest generation of lens types that can be adapted precisely to the individual requirements of your eyes.

Phakic Lenses

Phakic intraocular lenses, short Phakic lenses, can be used either in the anterior chamber or in the posterior chamber of the eye. This depends on the medical circumstances. The anterior chamber lens is placed between the iris and cornea. The posterior chamber lens, however, is placed between the iris and the natural lens. Decisive when selecting the right lens is the patient's age, as well as the amount of available space in the eye.

With an ICL not only nearsightedness or farsightedness can be corrected, but also vision disorders in combination with astigmatism.

For the correction of a vision disorder that is combined with an astigmatism, the so-called toric ICL is used. It is individually produced for each patient and an implantation plan is provided by the manufacturer for an accurate positioning of the lens. This is particularly important for the correction of astigmatism, because not only the dioptric power, but also the axis - and thus the position of the lens - is of great importance.

The ICL consists of a unique high-quality material. The most significant feature is its excellent tolerability. It is highly biocompatible and is therefore accepted very well by the body – this ensures that the lens can remain permanently in the eye. It provides reliable, predictable results, an excellent quality of vision and the treatment success manifests itself in no time.

Although the lens should remain permanently in the eye, the ICL implantation can be removed in individual cases – the implantation is therefore reversible. Thus, for example in case of emergency, where the eye has been injured e.g. due to an accident, the lens can be removed or replaced.In rare cases (5 percent in 5 years) it is possible that an early clouding of the natural lens occurs (cataract). In this case the two lenses would be exchanged and replaced with new intraocular lenses.

Euroeyes using: Blade less ICL surgery.

With bladeless ICL surgery, the operations is carried out under computer-guided imaging using a femtosecond Laser instead of knives.

Whereas, manual Icl surgery requires handheld surgical instruments to make incisions, the bladeless LenSx Laser provides image-guided control for increased accuracy and predictability. . This means there is greater control and reliability of the incision, which allows a perfectly shaped, perfectly sized and precisely located incision to be performed before the Lens is implanted. This allows a more accurate positioning and insertion of the lens implant, which optimises the visual outcome.

Euroeyes established team of highly specialised german eyesurgeons, supported by our strong multi-disciplinary team of medical specialists, nurses and therapists, will guide you with professionalism and care through the entire process from surgery to recovery and back to independence. Rest assured that we will do all we can to bring about successful treatment outcomes for our patients.

Frequently Asked Questions about the ICL Lens

When is an implant/lens surgery carried out?

When a laser treatment is no longer a sufficient treatment, for example, for refractive errors of more than -10 or +4 diopters, or if the cornea is too thin, implants are a good alternative. Either a refractive lens exchange is performed or a phakic intraocular lens is implanted. Thus it is possible for even the severely visually impaired to live a life without glasses or contact lenses!

Will I feel the ICL lens in my eye?

No, you will neither feel it, nor be able to see the intraocular lens.

There are two different types of Phakic Intraocular lenses: anterior chamber lenses and posterior chamber lenses.

Where is the anterior and/or posterior lens implanted?

The anterior chamber lens is implanted in front of the iris in the anterior chamber.

The posterior chamber intraocular lens is placed behind the iris and in front of the natural lens. It consists of Collamer, which is a biocompatible plastic.

Which treatment is paid for by the health insurance, or which refractive error applies?

Whether your health insurance takes care of laser treatment costs, and which conditions are required for this to happen, all depends on your health insurance, it's best to contact your insurance directly about this.

Is there a way to finance a laser eye treatment?

EuroEyes is working with the MediPay Financing bank. We offer our patients an up to 12 months deposit-free 0% financing. Even with a greater number of monthly installments, we offer attractive conditions and interest rates. What many people usually do not realize is the fact that the cumulative cost of glasses and / or contact lenses are paid off over a very long period of time–and the price therefore ends up being considerably higher than the non-recurring cost of a laser eye treatment. The surgery pays off completely - and in many cases after a relatively short amount of time.

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