LASIK Surgery Alternative2025-01-31T12:07:16+00:00

Free yourself from glasses and contacts with implantable contact lenses

Discover how ICLs enable you to enjoy clear vision without visual aids even if you’re unsuitable for laser eye surgery

Free yourself from glasses and contacts with implantable contact lenses

Discover how ICLs enable you to enjoy clear vision without visual aids even if you’re unsuitable for laser eye surgery

ICL surgery is ideal if you’re not suitable for laser eye surgery

It provides some patients with an option that is safe and effective

3 easy steps to free yourself from glasses and contacts

Laser vision correction options can be confusing. We’ve made the journey as straightforward as can be

Get in touch

Not everyone is suitable for laser eye surgery. The first step is to get a clear answer on whether laser eye surgery can help you or not. Give our friendly team a call on 0800 99 2020 or use our easy online calendar to book a free laser assessment.

We’ll meet

At your assessment, we’ll answer your questions and give you a clear and honest recommendation based on your lifestyle. You’ll leave with a  confident understanding of the best eye treatment option for your unique eyes.

Enjoy freedom

After treatment, New Zealanders across the country tell us how surprised they are by how quickly their life changed. They also mention that they wish they had done it years earlier! When people say yes to eye treatment, they say yes to a new life, free from the limitation of glasses and contacts!

Enjoy the freedom and convenience that comes with a life without glasses and contacts

Our patients can appreciate the beauty all around them with clear natural vision

Embrace beautiful natural vision

If you’ve worn glasses and contact lenses your whole life, you’ll be familiar with the many trials and tribulations that accompany them. Glasses can make you feel inconvenienced, self-conscious and restricted, while contact lenses can be uncomfortable, cause dry eyes and increase your risk of eye infections.

After ICL surgery, you’ll have freed yourself from their limiting nature and can enjoy life with the beautiful natural vision you deserve.

When frustration turns into freedom

Studies have shown that the transition from visually dependent to visual liberation can do amazing things for your quality of life. Our patients report feeling more confident, healthy and more eager to join in on social events and activities.

Your setbacks become successes

Whether you’re into extreme sports, gentle walks or morning talks over coffee, there’s nothing more distracting than your glasses slipping down your nose, fogging-up or falling-off. Contact lenses can be just as bad; they can slip out of place, require constant cleaning and storing, and can cost a small fortune over time!

After ICL surgery, our patients live worry-free. They no longer have to endure the inconveniences of glasses and contacts and find they have more energy and drive to devote to their hobbies, careers and the people around them.

Don’t settle for anything less

If poor vision and a life of glasses and contacts are all you know, it can be easy to accept their drawbacks and just carry on.

Don’t!

Not many things are as precious as sight, and the experiences and opportunities that amazing natural vision can give you are priceless. Our patients will tell you that their only regret is that they didn’t do it sooner.

Even those unsuitable for laser eye surgery can enjoy life without glasses and contacts

Discover how this straightforward treatment gives you visual freedom

ICL suitability criteria

Are your eyes unsuitable for LASIK? You could still enjoy clear vision without glasses, with implantable contact lenses from Eye Institute.

Implantable contact lenses (Visian ICLs) are the ideal solution if you struggle to wear external contact lenses, but you’re unsuitable for laser eye surgery because of:

The Visian ICL technique has been in use since 1993, and more than 125,000 procedures have been carried out worldwide, so the technology is highly developed and very safe.

A Visian ICL is very safe to use, extremely biocompatible (made from Collamer with some collagen). It can even be removed in the future, as it does not alter the eye’s structure in any way.

Implantable contact lenses are made from a special ‘biocompatible’ material that works with your body’s natural chemistry. Each thin, foldable lens is uniquely tailored to your eye and custom made for you in Switzerland.

We insert the custom lenses behind your iris (the coloured part of your eye) in front of your eye’s natural lens. The lenses alter your eye’s focusing point to give you clearer vision in the same way that wearing glasses or contact lenses does.

Unlike many older designs of ICL, you’ll find your ICLs from Eye Institute are completely invisible to anyone looking at your eyes. It’s also safe to continue playing contact sports after your ICL surgery.

Advantages:
  • Corrects high level of myopia, hyperopia and/or astigmatism for people that are unsuitable for laser vision correction.
  • Treatment option for stable or mild Keratoconus.
  • Freedom from glasses and contact lenses.
  • Reversible – We can remove ICL implants and/or exchange them if there is a change to the focus error over time.
  • Short recovery – You can resume normal activities within a few days following surgery.
Disadvantages
  • May not be suitable for people with glaucoma.
  • Not suitable for people with small eyes or a shallow anterior chamber depth.

Risks include:
  • Infection – Extremely uncommon occurrence.
  • There is a rare risk of inducing the onset of lens opacity or cataract.
  • Raised intraocular pressure, or IOP.

You may be suitable for LASIK, SMILE or PRK laser vision correction or refractive lens exchange.

Your ophthalmologist will be able to assess your eyes to determine the most appropriate procedure for you.

What’s involved in an ICL procedure?

The ICL procedure is virtually painless and takes around the same time as a typical LASIK operation to correct each eye (no more than 15 minutes). You’ll be given a topical (no needle!) anaesthetic to numb your eye so that you won’t feel any pain. We can also give you a mild sedative to help with any nerves you may have.
Then, using advanced no-stitch surgical techniques, the surgeon will insert the Visian ICL through a tiny self-sealing slit in your cornea (the surface of the eye).

Afterwards

The ICL procedure will take no more than about 15 minutes, after which you’ll be free to go home within 2 hours, returning for a postoperative examination the following morning. You should be able to return to normal activities within days.
You’ll need to have some follow-up checks after your ICL operation and an annual check-up. Don’t worry if you live outside Auckland, though. We can arrange your check-ups with your local optometrist near to where you live.

Implantable contact lenses provide the same results as external contact lenses. The only difference is that they sit inside your eye to give you permanently clearer vision with much more convenience and comfort.

Discover if you could be free from glasses and contacts

Everyone deserves a life free from glasses and contacts, but not everyone is suitable. The best way to find out if vision correction is right for you is to book a free laser assessment. You’ll get a clear and honest answer on your suitability and treatment options.

Discover if you could be free from glasses and contacts

Everyone deserves a life free from glasses and contacts, but not everyone is suitable. The best way to find out if vision correction is right for you is to book a free laser assessment. You’ll get a clear and honest answer on your suitability and treatment options.

BOOK A FREE LASER ASSESSMENT
Do glasses or contact lenses hold you back?

Choose the option below that sounds most like you to discover your best solution

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I’m fed up with glasses and contacts

Do you feel a bit restricted when wearing your glasses or when your eyes feel dry from your contact lenses? No one should have to feel uncomfortable trying to see. Feel more comfortable and confident with natural vision.

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I’m fed up with glasses and contacts but have been turned down for laser eye surgery

Do you want to ditch the sometimes limiting nature of glasses and contacts but have been told you’re unsuitable for laser eye surgery? Implantable contact lenses might be an ideal solution.

LEARN MORE

Affiliations and memberships

We are proud to be a part of these professional bodies

Watch the best patient education videos on laser eye surgery in New Zealand

Get a quick overview of everything you need to know about gaining visual freedom

Take this quick quiz to discover if you can be free from glasses and contacts

Not everyone can benefit from laser eye surgery. You have many different options depending on your eyes, age and lifestyle. Take this quick 2-min quiz to find out which type of laser eye surgery or other vision correction treatment might be right for you.

Additional resources on implantable contact lenses (ICLs)

Learn more about this laser eye surgery alternative treatment from authoritative sources

Investigators assess the long-term correction of moderate to high myopia using a posterior chamber phakic IOL with a central port design. Click here to read more about the study.

Implantable collamer lenses are a type of posterior chamber phakic intraocular lens (pIOL). pIOL are usually used for high degrees of refractive error or when corneal refractive surgery is contraindicated. Advantages over corneal refractive surgery also include quicker recovery and reversibility. Posterior chamber pIOL provide a more cosmetically appealing alternative to anterior chamber (AC) pIOL because they are less visible externally and create less risk of endothelial cell loss (ECL) as they are placed further away from the cornea. Click here to read more.

Phakic intraocular lens (phakic IOL or pIOL) implants are an alternative to LASIK and PRK eye surgery for correcting moderate to severe myopia (nearsightedness). In some cases, phakic IOLs produce better and more predictable vision outcomes than laser refractive surgery. Click here to read more.

Note: These links will take you off our website

Meet our world-class surgeons

Our industry-leading experts are here to guide you every step of the way

Dr Nick Mantell

MB ChB

Dr Peter Ring

MB ChB

Dr Adam Watson

MB ChB

Dr Shanu Subbiah

MBCHB FRCOphth

Dr Liz Insull

FRANZCO

Prof Helen Danesh-Meyer

MB ChB FRANZCO GNZM MD PHD FRANZCO

Dr Narme Deva

MBChB MD FRANZCO

Dr William Cunningham

MBChB FRANZCO

Dr Jay Meyer

BS MPH MD

Prof Charles McGhee

MB ChB ONZM PHD FRANZCO FRCOphth

Dr Graham Reeves

MBChB FRCOphth FRANZCO

Dr Kaliopy Matheos

BSc MSc MBChB FRANZCO

Dr Peter Hadden

FRANZCO

Dr Sophie Hill

MBBS FRCOphth

Dr Baswati Sahoo

FRCS MS DNB FRANZCO

Dr Shira Sheen

MD PgDip Ophth

Dr Kevin Dunne

FRANZCO

Dr Ammar Binsadiq

FRANZCO

Dr Edward Hutchins

FRANZCO

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TAKE A STEP TO FREEDOM

Discover if you could be free from the hassle of glasses and contacts.

Take the first step by getting your free laser suitability assessment to check if your eyes are suitable and which treatment option is right for your eyes.

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