Siedlecki Cataract & Vision Care

Siedlecki Cataract & Vision Care General ophthalmology medical practice since 1989. Six doctors available to evaluate and treat a wide range of eye conditions. Dr. Andrew J. Dr. Andrew N.

We specialize in cataract surgery and comprehensive eye care. Locations in Williamsville, Amherst, and Orchard Park. Siedlecki is dual Board Certified in Ophthalmology and Cataract Surgery. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and Cornell Medical School, and was Chief Resident in Ophthalmology at Virginia Commonwealth University/Medical College of Virginia. He has been in practice for 25 years, s

pecializing in cataract surgery, eyelid surgery, implantable contact lenses as an alternative to LASIK, glaucoma, and comprehensive ophthalmology. He has been team ophthalmologist for the Buffalo Sabres for the past 15 years. Siedlecki's distinguished career is highlighted by the faith placed in him by 30,000+ Western New Yorkers who have chosen him for their eye surgeries. Siedlecki is a native of Western New York. He graduated first in his class at Niagara University and went on to receive his medical degree from Dartmouth School of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency training at University Hospitals/Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio where he was appointed as Chief Resident and awarded "Most Exemplary Resident". Siedlecki moved back home to Western New York in 2020 to join his father in practice. He provides comprehensive eye care including annual eye exams, cataract surgery, glaucoma, dry eye, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy.

07/28/2026

Short, but encouraging update on our first month treating patients with the new Valeda PBM light therapy device for dry macular degeneration.

Five patients have completed their first month of treatments. All treatments were well tolerated without any discomfort or side effects. Of those 5 patients, four patients reported a subjective improvement in their vision. Of those four patients, three of them demonstrated 1-2 lines of improvement on the eye chart.

Frankly, this is even better than I had hoped. In the next few months, I will update you all more formally with the findings of a slightly larger set of patients (about 10-15). This small subset though has me very excited. Patients are not only slowing their progression, but they seem to be regressing to some extent.

For those whom I have spoken to whose insurances have denied their treatment, I am putting together a comprehensive letter to those insurance companies to make the case that these treatments are not experimental or investigational, and that delay in treating patients may cause harm. I am waiting to send it out until I have a little more real-world data to make my argument more compelling. Stay tuned!

ANS

Voyager dSLT results update:We have been performing the new dSLT procedure for two months now and are starting to see pa...
07/13/2026

Voyager dSLT results update:

We have been performing the new dSLT procedure for two months now and are starting to see patients back after having this new light therapy for eye pressure and glaucoma. I am happy to report that the results thus far have been encouraging:

1. Average reduction in intraocular pressure (IOP) with one treatment was 5.7 mmHg
2. Average percent reduction in IOP with one treatment was 26.31%
3. Percent of patients able to discontinue one eyedrop: 100%.
4. Percent of patients who did not need to start eye drops: 100%
5. Percent of patients who failed to respond to treatment (reduction in IOP less than 5): 0%

My initial comparison to conventional SLT is that the average magnitude of effect is similar, however dSLT seems to have a more consistent result: the reduction in pressure is very tightly clustered around 5-6 mmHg of IOP reduction, where conventional SLT seems to have a more inconsistent spread – larger potential upsides, but some patients not responding to treatment.

Perhaps this reflects the fact that conventional SLT is performed by a doctor and influenced by the human element, whereas the dSLT treatment is customized by the doctor, but executed by a computer algorithm. One could assume that the computer algorithm is more consistent.

My dataset however is still smaller than I’d like, so I will update you all when I have 5-10x as many datapoints. In either case, I find the results thus far to be encouraging.

ANS

The Siedlecki Family celebrated the 4th of July in Lewiston this year. We hope you spent some time with your families th...
07/06/2026

The Siedlecki Family celebrated the 4th of July in Lewiston this year. We hope you spent some time with your families this weekend.

One of the prevailing feelings that struck me this weekend was one of gratitude. I am grateful for the decades of hard work that my father sacrificed to lay the foundation for our family practice. I am grateful for the opportunities that this country has provided for our family, and we are grateful to our patients and staff for allowing us to build this small family business of ours into something special.

God Bless you all and God Bless America!

ANS

06/30/2026

My father and I were talking about the practice this past weekend, specifically about how the medical landscape has changed (I would normally say “evolved,” but you’ll see why I didn’t) in the past 3-4 decades since my father started the practice – particularly the last few years since the pandemic.

In increasingly impersonal times, we commit to you to provide you with the same patient-focused care that we have since the 90s – care for Western New Yorkers, by Western New Yorkers. We are a family. When you call our office, an actual human will pick up the phone. I know all of them personally, and many of them I’ve known since I was a teenager. When you are seen for a surgical consultation, you will meet with the surgeon and not be rushed through the system in an assembly line. If you call our overnight/emergency line, the message goes directly to me, and I will be the one responding.

It may be an old-fashioned way of doing things, but we have always been a family business dedicated to treating you like you are one of our own.

Dr. Pasquale has been with our family practice for a little over a year now and in that time, he has performed well over...
06/22/2026

Dr. Pasquale has been with our family practice for a little over a year now and in that time, he has performed well over 1,000 eyelid procedures for Western New Yorkers (including other eye doctors and their family members). I've included several "before and after" comparisons to demonstrate his work. Needless to say, patients and eye care professionals have been pleased and impressed with the results.

Almost all of our eyelid surgeries are covered by medical insurance. While the primary purpose of these procedures is to provide the medical benefits of reduced eye strain and fatigue as well as improve peripheral vision, it is difficult to ignore the cosmetic advantages of the procedures: more youthful appearance, more visible eyelashes, and an increased platform for mascara or eyeliner.

Dr. Pasquale is always taking new patients. If you think you would be a good candidate for blepharoplasty and/or ptosis surgery for droopy lids, send me a private message or give our offices a call to schedule your consultation.

In the last few years, our family practice has invested heavily in our patients' success. From our newly renovated clini...
06/16/2026

In the last few years, our family practice has invested heavily in our patients' success. From our newly renovated clinics to our state-of-the-art surgery center in Orchard Park, we believe that no expense should be spared in ensuring our patients have access to the latest technology and ultimately see their best.

Most recently, we have become the first clinical site in Western New York for both the Voyager dSLT for glaucoma and the Valeda PBM for macular degeneration. We hope that other professionals in the area are inspired to follow suit.

Though there is increasing acceptance and enthusiasm for photobiomodulation (PBM) in AMD treatment, there still exists a...
06/09/2026

Though there is increasing acceptance and enthusiasm for photobiomodulation (PBM) in AMD treatment, there still exists a concern that the average patient undergoing this therapy only gains one line of vision on the eye chart, and some question whether this improvement is significant enough to recommend widespread adoption of the technology.

I understand that one line of vision may not seem like a lot…however one line of vision with AMD could be the difference between passing and failing the vision test to renew your drivers license. It could be the difference between being forced to rely on your loved ones for transportation to all doctors appointments, grocery store trips, prescription pickups at the pharmacy, etc. It could be the difference between being able to see the score of the Bills game or the text in your favorite book. One line can make a world of difference in my humble opinion.

Also, let’s not forget that patients undergoing Valeda are less likely to lose vision. Regardless of the improvement (be it deemed ‘significant’ or not), avoiding vision loss is also a key benefit of therapy. When you factor in the decrease in vision loss that is expected without treatment, the difference between those treated and not treated increases to almost two lines on average. That’s only at the one-year mark – as we continue to learn more, that difference will likely widen.

***Attached data is extrapolated from the LIGHTSITE III trial (Boyer et al. 2024).

We've had a lot of interest in the new Valeda light therapy for dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Here are a f...
06/02/2026

We've had a lot of interest in the new Valeda light therapy for dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Here are a few frequently-asked questions that I have gotten:

1. Who is a candidate for Valeda treatment?
Valeda light therapy is approved for intermediate or advanced nonexudative (or "dry") AMD. In the studies, patients were enrolled if their best-corrected visual acuity was 20/32 or worse. Most patients that I see are considered 'mild' AMD and their vision is unaffected by the disease. There are specific criteria to classify someone as intermediate AMD, which I would estimate represents as much as 15-20% of our practice's patient population with AMD.

2. What are the benefits of Valeda light therapy?
The benefits are two-fold. First, a large portion of patients undergoing treatment GAIN vision back. More than 60% of the patients enrolled in the study improved their vision by one line on the eye chart or more. About one-out-of-four patients gained two lines of vision. This sort of thing has never been seen before in the world of AMD. No other treatment available (past or present) has ever been able to show IMPROVEMENT in vision.

Second, the treatments significantly reduced the risk of LOSING vision. Patients getting Valeda light therapy were 2-3 times less-likely to lose visual acuity over the study period. Further, there was a reduction of progression to geographic atrophy. Patients getting Valeda light therapy were 10 times less likely to develop this blinding form of dry AMD at 1 year from the start of treatment.

3. Is this for real?
Yes, this is real. I get it -- light therapy...really? Skepticism about new technology is good and natural, but the data is compelling. More importantly, nothing else out there in the history of our treatment of AMD has ever done anything other than attempt to slow the inevitable blindness that ensues from the progression of the disease. There have been historically no other options besides taking AREDS vitamins, quitting smoking, and hoping for the best. Those treatments have existed for decades, and we unfortunately still see patients going blind from AMD regularly.

Novel treatments always take time to gain popularity. For example, the first intraocular lens with cataract surgery was implanted in 1949 by Sir Harold Ridley. It wasn't until the 1970's that intraocular lenses became an accepted practice. In the meantime, Dr. Ridley persevered ridicule by the ophthalmology community at large. He was later knighted by the Queen of England in 2000 for his achievements (over 50 year later). Now, effectively every cataract surgery performed is done with an intraocular lens implantation at the same time. Resistance and skepticism for new technology is potentially a good thing (the increasing use of AI, for instance), but I think that giving my patients choices is also a good.

4. What does treatment with Valeda entail?
Treatment involves staring at a specific sequence of light wavelengths for a 5-minute period per eye. One series of treatments requires 9 treatments over a 5-week period. Four series of treatments are recommended per year. The protocol is rigorous, but fortunately each individual treatment is quick, and the visit will be designed to be very efficient.

5. Where will you be offering this therapy?
Our Valeda unit is located at our Amherst office at 2875 Niagara Falls Boulevard. If there is sufficient demand, we are considering placing a unit at our Orchard Park location as well in time.

For those who have made it this far in the post, thank you for your attention.

***Figure attached produced from LIGHTSITE III Trial data (Boyer et. al 2024).

Did you know that macular degeneration may now be reversible? A new light treatment became available earlier this year t...
05/26/2026

Did you know that macular degeneration may now be reversible?

A new light treatment became available earlier this year that can not only prevent progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), but also potentially reverse the changes. The treatment, called "photobiomodulation", involves having patients look at specific wavelengths of light for 3-5 minutes at a time. I myself was skeptical at first but science behind it is solid. Attached is one example over two years of intermittent treatments. As you can see, a substantial amount of the degenerative changes from AMD have disappeared and this patient's vision improved by several lines on the eye chart.

Our offices will be one of the first in the region to offer this technology to our patients. It is covered by most Medicare insurance plans. Over the coming weeks, I will be posting more information about the science and technology behind it and also about our offices' rollout of this exciting new treatment.

If you or a loved one has macular degeneration or are interested in learning more, let me know in the comments or send a private message to the page and you will be contacted with more information.

- ANS

05/19/2026

When my father started the practice almost 40 years ago, intraocular lens technology was in its infancy. Cataracts were typically much more severe at the time of surgery because the risks of surgery were relatively high. Patients were thrilled to see even just the 'big E' afterwards.

Nowadays, surgery is overwhelmingly safe (with a complication rate less than a fraction of a percent) and the lens implant technology has reached exceptional heights. As a result, expectations with surgery are higher than ever, but fortunately the technology can deliver in almost all cases.

Probably the most important decision when considering cataract surgery (apart from the surgeon), is the lens implant technology best suited for your eyes in order to achieve the type of vision that your life demands after surgery. We spend a considerable amount of time with patients counseling them on their options. Often, this results in recommending more advanced lens technologies, such as astigmatism-correcting "toric" lenses or presbyopia-correcting multifocal lenses. Also commonly, this results in recommending more standard monofocal lenses covered by medical insurance.

Patients should never feel pressured to get any particular type of lens implant with your cataract surgery. The goal is to match the patient with a lens that meets their needs. Sometimes, less is more and patients should opt for the more standard options and continue their use of reading glasses or bifocals. Keep in mind however, that the intraocular lens implant stays in the eye forever and your glasses prescription, or lack thereof, should remain stable throughout your lifetime.

Despite the technological advances, perfection is difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. Counseling patients to have realistic expectations is key to success. We make a considerable effort to ensure that our patients' expectations are set and met.

Address

170 Maple Road
Buffalo, NY
14221

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 4pm
Tuesday 8am - 4pm
Wednesday 8am - 4pm
Thursday 8am - 4pm
Friday 8am - 4pm

Telephone

+17166348500

Website

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