Don't qualify for LASIK? Permanent contact lenses may be your vision game-changer
MINNEAPOLIS -- More people than ever now have a shot at one day having 20/20 vision.
There's a new type of permanent contact lens that is open to younger people and people who don't qualify for LASIK.
The FDA recently approved the EVO lens. WCCO found out how it changed a Plymouth woman's life at a time she needed it most.
Elizabeth Bullis lost her beloved husband last May after a grueling fight with brain cancer.
"Justin was the nicest person probably in the entire world I've ever met. No malice in him," Bullis said. "I was my husband's primary caretaker throughout the two years, you know. In home hospice I was there every day, every surgery."
So, as part of her grief journey, the newly-single mom is learning to take care of herself.
"It became the time of, 'What can I do for myself right now? What's gonna improve my health, which then improves my familiy's health?' And I'm their last parent and I need to be at the best capacity that I can be at for them," Bullis said.
She started with her vision. She was legally blind without glasses. Her vision was so bad she didn't qualify for LASIK, but she does qualify for EVO permanent contacts, which are inserted under the iris.
"Patients like Liz are legally blind without their glasses, and so she couldn't see more than 4 inches from her face," said Dr. Ralph Chu of Chu Vision Institute. "And after surgery she could see me, read my name tag from across the room, and it was amazing to see those tears of joy."
She burst into happy tears right after the 20-minute procedure.
"The exciting thing about the EVO implantable contact lens is that it really opens up the range of patients who qualify for vision correction surgery," Chu said.
Bullis is marveling over her 20/20 vision.
"The ability to see clearly right after surgery is life changing," Bullis said.
And even though her life will never be the same, she is finally seeing things more clearly. She laughs and smiles, thinking of Justin.
"He'd be excited!" Bullis said.
The EVO procedure, which is not covered by insurance, costs about $4,500 per eye. It is surgically reversible.
