The way things were and are. Changing indications for intraocular lens implantation.

In the midst of a rapidly exploding technology, guidelines for intraocular lens implantation in the United States were conservative several years ago in order to ensure good results and patient safety. Many of the views held then are now obsolete. The indications for its use should be left to the judgment of the surgeon and a properly informed patient. Intraocular lenses need no longer be restricted to the elderly, although caution is recommended in children and young adults. Restricting lens implants to one eye is obsolete, but there should be a reasonable time period of success before an implant is placed in the second eye. The approach to the one-eyed patient and those with other ocular pathology may now be modified.