Procedures
The same operation used for cataracts, performed to correct your prescription and presbyopia before a cataract ever forms. Your natural lens is replaced with an intraocular lens chosen for your vision — and that eye will never develop a cataract.
What it is
Behind the pupil sits the eye's natural lens. In our forties it stiffens and stops focusing up close, which is presbyopia; decades later it clouds, which is a cataract. Refractive lens exchange replaces that lens with a clear artificial one, an intraocular lens, whose power is calculated for your eye.
The operation is technically the same as modern cataract surgery. The difference is timing and purpose: it is done to correct the prescription, including prescriptions too high for laser surgery, rather than because the lens has clouded. Since the artificial lens cannot cloud, that eye will not develop a cataract later.
In 24 seconds
Illustrative schematic, no sound. Only the surgeon decides candidacy, after a full in-clinic evaluation.
Dr. Serrano needs these measurements before he can confirm you are a candidate and plan the operation. You can have them done at home and send the reports, or have them done in Cabo.
Counts the cells on the inner surface of the cornea. They keep it clear and do not regrow, so the count tells the surgeon how well the cornea will tolerate surgery inside the eye.
Measures the length of the eye and the curvature of the cornea to calculate the power of your implant. The lens is ordered from these numbers, which is why they matter for the trip.
A general health check and basic blood tests before surgery inside the eye. The clinic gives you the exact list at the evaluation; if you have diabetes, heart or blood-pressure conditions, bring your physician's notes.
Also bring or send: Your current glasses prescription · A list of the medicines you take · Any previous eye surgery reports
Any optometrist or ophthalmologist with the equipment can do them. Send the reports by WhatsApp or email before your video evaluation; Dr. Serrano reviews them and repeats a measurement in clinic only if a report is unclear or not recent. With the lens calculation in hand, your implant is ordered before you fly.
3 to 4 nights per eyeThe measurements are taken at your in-clinic evaluation. The implant is then ordered and takes about three working days to arrive, after which surgery and the next-day check follow. Simpler, but a longer stay.
About a week: the lens takes ~3 working days to arrive after the measurementsThe cost of the tests, and a package that bundles them with the surgery, is quoted at the evaluation. Printable checklist for your eye doctor →
The eye's length and corneal curve are measured to calculate the lens power. Monofocal, toric or extended-range options are explained and chosen with you before you book, never on the day.
Anaesthetic drops, outpatient. The incision is a few millimetres and usually needs no stitches.
Ultrasound breaks up the natural lens, which is removed, and the folded intraocular lens is placed in the same capsule and unfolds into position.
Dr. Serrano examines the eye himself the following day. Clearance to fly is given in writing at that visit, never before it.
A shield over the eye, mild scratchiness, blurred vision from the dilating drops. Someone should accompany you back to the hotel.
In-person check. Whether the second eye is done on this trip, and when, follows the plan Dr. Serrano set at your evaluation.
Drops for several weeks. No heavy lifting, swimming or rubbing the eye. Vision settles as the eye heals.
Final check of the prescription with your optometrist at home. Any glasses for fine tasks are prescribed then.
Every eye is different. Dr. Serrano goes through the risks that apply to yours at the evaluation, before you decide anything.
A summary to orient you. The evaluation decides, not the table.
| Feature | Lens exchange | LASIK | Cataract surgery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treats | Presbyopia and high prescriptions | Myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism | A clouded natural lens |
| Works on | The lens, replaced | Cornea, under a flap | The lens, replaced |
| Typical age | About 45 and over | 18 to mid-40s | Usually 60 and over |
| Helps with reading vision | Depends on the lens chosen | No | Depends on the lens chosen |
| Cataract later in that eye | No | Still possible | No |
| Typical stay in Cabo | Set by your plan | 3 to 4 nights | Set by your plan |
Pricing
In U.S. dollars. The final quote is given in writing after your evaluation.
LASIK and lens exchange · evaluation required
How it's done
What each technique does, who it's for and what to expect. Anything that doesn't fit here gets answered at your evaluation.
The eye's natural lens is broken up with ultrasound and removed through an incision of a few millimetres that usually needs no stitches. It is today's standard technique for cataract surgery and for lens exchange.
The lens that replaces your natural one is chosen for your prescription and what you want from your vision: distance with reading glasses, or several distances with less dependence on glasses. Dr. Serrano works through it with you at the evaluation.
Frequently asked questions
Technically yes: the natural lens is removed and an intraocular lens is placed. The difference is the reason — here it's done to correct your prescription and presbyopia, not because the lens has clouded.
That depends on the plan Dr. Serrano sets for you. He explains it at your evaluation, along with how many days you'll need in Cabo.
Only after your in-person check and written clearance from Dr. Serrano. The trip is planned around that, not the other way round.
LASIK reshapes the cornea but leaves a lens that is already losing its focus and will later cloud. Lens exchange addresses the lens itself, so it can help with distance and near together and removes the future cataract. It is also surgery inside the eye, with different risks. The evaluation weighs both for your eyes.
A monofocal lens gives its best focus at one distance, usually far, with reading glasses for near. A toric lens also corrects astigmatism. Multifocal and extended-range lenses spread focus across distances and reduce the need for glasses, with a higher chance of halos at night. The choice changes the price and is made before you book.
Many people use glasses much less, but nobody can promise none at all. It depends on the lens chosen, on your eye's healing and on how demanding your near work is.
When there is no cataract it is an elective procedure, and U.S. insurers generally do not cover it at home or abroad. You receive an itemised receipt you can use for a health savings or flexible spending account if your plan allows it.
Yes; Los Cabos is one municipality and the clinic in San José del Cabo is 30 to 40 minutes from Cabo San Lucas. Lens exchange is done one eye at a time, so we plan the visits to keep the driving reasonable.
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