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I am a 77 year old tuba player having difficulty seeing my music. My ophthalmologist is recommending cataract surgery as he says I've reached the extent of correction through glasses. There are several options for surgically implanted lenses including a fixed basic lens and the so-called symphony multi-focal lens. It seems to me that a fixed lens implant with glasses for reading music might be the best option as I haven't been able to find anyone that had the multi-focal lens implant. Does anyone have suggestions based on personal experience? I have a wonderful 1928 Martin mammoth front action and a nice Miraphone 191-4v that I would like to continue to play with some degree of competence. Vision has become a real issue.

Mike Roetter
Maumee (Ohio) Community Band

I have not had surgery, but I wear progressive lens trifocals BUT for reading music, I have music reading glasses. Like night and day..

I have had one eye done and went for the fixed lens option. For music, I use a pair of single focal glasses that are optimized for computer use. The problem with tuba and euphonium is that they put your head in a fixed position and don’t allow you to take advantage of progressive or multi focal lenses. With the computer glasses the music is always focussed and the conductor, while slightly blurry, is still easy to follow. My surgeon advised against the multi focal implants because they can increase glare and make night driving more difficult. He is also a wind instrument player and advised staying off the horn for at least a week after the surgery.

Hi Mike, I had cataract surgery 3 years ago when I was 66. I opted for the Symphony lenses (multi focal), although my insurance didn’t cover those lenses. Insurance only cover basic lenses. I had to pay somewhere around $700. per lens extra for the Symphony lenses. And, the doctor opted to make one eye strong and the other slightly weaker to help with reading music. It would be the same principle as having one strong contact lens and one weaker one. I think it’s called mono vision.

I'm very satisfied with the result. My distance vision is great and I read music with no problem. For reading a book or using the computer (a MacBook), I usually wear cheapo reading magnifiers, but I can get by without them. I read stuff on my iphone without the reading glasses.

A byproduct of cataract surgery is that when you have cataracts, there is a film over your eyes that makes you see everything with a greenish tint. You don’t even realize it. After the surgery, I was amazed at how vivd colors looked. They looked they way they’re supposed to look. I recommend the symphony lenses, but you’d have to check to see what they would cost and if your insurance would cover them.

I've had the surgery.

I went with the fixed lenses.

My vision is not perfect now, I still have some issues. But like you I had reached the point where glasses did not correct, and the music was always blurred even with single vision glasses for the distance of the stand. It was a standing joke in our choir that I never sang the right words, though I was on pitch.

Now I have glasses that correct for some tasks, and in some cases I can actually read music without glasses at all (if large and in good light.) I drive without glasses also. I'm singing the correct words now - in some cases I like my own better.

The surgery was far less intrusive than I'd anticipated. A little happy juice and though they say you're not really out, you pretty much are.

I’m a ophthalmic technician and I find it quite difficult to perform a final refraction on the Symphony IOLs. I find that patients who pick a distance vision fixed lens, although reliant on intermediate/reading glasses, have a better overall surgical outcome. They’re a good product, but I would temper your expectations of not needing reading glasses following the surgery

i had cataract surgery a few years ago after I had trouble reading music. I opted for the fixed lenses (what my insurance would pay for) and ended up 20-20 as long as it was 3 feet away. Find the right optometrist, explain you need to read music and get glasses that work. I haven't regretted it one bit.

I had three surgeries to correct issues with 2 cataracts and a crossed eye which caused double vision.

I was not told until after both cataracts were removed that I could have the muscle surgery to correct my double vision. Previous to my muscle surgery, I wore prism trifocals that were about a 1/4” thick.

I SHOULD have had the muscle surgery first, then had the Symphony lenses implanted, but although I still have to wear 1.25 or 1.50 reading glasses to read music and newspaper print, I consider being able to see without double images nothing short of miraculous.

GOOD LUCK, whatever you choose.

I had laser cataract surgery three years ago. I had the multi-focal lenses inserted. My ophthalmologist said I would be able to see medium and far, but would need reading glasses for up close work. She was right! I no longer need glasses to read music when playing the tuba or the piano.

I was glad i had the laser surgery. The recovery time was short. I had the right eye done on a Monday and the left eye done on Wednesday of the same week. I had a gig scheduled for Thursday of that week. I asked the doctor if I would be able to drive to the gig and play tuba. She said there should be no problem. Once again, she was right. I had no problems seeing to drive or read music one day after surgery on the second eye.