3D eye simulation directs noninvasive process to prolong glasses-free vision

Ophthalmology company Kejako (Geneva, Switzerland) has developed what it calls a noninvasive “Phakorestoration” process, whereby a laser patterns the lens of the eye of a presbyopia patient to restore clear vision just at the level needed for the patient to avoid wearing eyeglasses. This Phakorestoration process is repeated at intervals spanning several years over a patient’s lifetime, prolonging glasses-free vision for as long as 20 years—the average period between the onset of presbyopia and the development of cataracts.

To direct the noninvasive ocular lens patterning procedure, a complete 3D model of the human eye is created for each presbyopia patient using Multiphysics software from COMSOL (Burlington, MA). The software was required to handle the large amount of parametric data and physics required, including fluidics of the aqueous humor and other regions, optical density and refractive-index modeling of the lens and cornea, forces from muscle ligaments and collagen fibers as they deform the eye shape, and a ray-tracing feature to observe the imaging capabilities of the individual eye. Using optical coherence tomography (OCT) images of the eye coupled with the software model, a full-eye model is developed for each patient that is then translated into a laser prescription for periodic vision-correction procedures that prolong glasses-free vision. Reference: COMSOL, “Multiphysics Simulation,” an insert to IEEE Spectrum, 6–9 (Oct. 2018).