Life Without Glasses

Refractive Lens Exchange

The natural lens in your eye is an important contributor to your eye’s ability to focus light. In fact, your natural lens having the wrong power is a common cause of nearsightedness and farsightedness. As discussed in previous chapters, LASIK and PRK correct nearsightedness and farsightedness by changing the focusing power of the cornea. Another way to correct nearsightedness or farsightedness is to change the focusing power of the lens. We do this by removing the lens and replacing it with a new lens with the correct power to give you good vision. This operation is called refractive lens exchange or RLE for short.

Both refractive lens exchange and the ICL procedure involve inserting a synthetic lens in your eye, but they are different procedures. In RLE, the natural lens is removed, while in the ICL procedure it is left in place.

How Refractive Lens Exchange Corrects Your Vision »