Cataracts are the top cause of people losing their eyesight and are the result of protein buildup on the ocular lens of the eye. The protein buildup causes the lens to become cloudy and obscure vision. While the condition is most prevalent in the elderly population, cataracts can occur at any age. Many people who are afflicted with the condition are somewhat fearful of having cataract surgery. However, advances in surgical techniques have made cataract surgery very low risk and highly effective. Here are five things you need to know about cataract surgery:
1) Cataracts are Common
The eyes produce tears for lubrication and tears contain proteins. While there are various types of cataracts and the condition can afflict people of all ages, cataracts are most often age-related, and the older a person gets the more proteins to build upon the lens of the eye. Most Americans will have developed age-related cataracts to some degree by the time they reach 80 years of age. However, while the incidence of cataracts increases as people age, this does not necessarily mean that everyone will develop cataracts at some point.
Some types of cataracts progress much more rapidly than others. Faster growing cataracts will often require treatment in just a few years post-diagnosis, however, the slower-growing types may not need to be addressed for decades. Irrelevant to age, the faster-growing types of cataracts usually result in response to some type of external factors, such as illness, injury or exposure to radiation, including UV light. While there has been some speculation that contact wearers are at greater risk for developing cataracts, there is no current scientific evidence to substantiate this concern.
2) Treatment
Cataracts can be removed through various methods, with one common option being to surgically replace the natural cloudy lens with a permanent artificial one. However, other eye conditions may not make replacing the lens feasible. In these cases, the cloudy lens is removed and eyesight is corrected with prescription eyewear. Another option is using refractive eye surgery to improve vision beyond what is possible with standard cataract surgery.
Cataract surgery is typically an outpatient procedure that does not require hospitalization. Local anesthesia is used and the patient remains awake throughout the surgery. However, patients can be put under with general anesthesia if they prefer. The surgeon uses ultrasound to break up the lens and the pieces are then removed by suction and the new lens is put in place. Cataract surgery is not usually painful, with most patients reporting only a mild sensation.
- X) Risk Factors
While cataract surgery is not totally without risk, the benefits of cataract surgery far outweigh the risks for most people as less than five percent of patients experience any form of serious complications. Possible complications can include a detached retina, lens dislocation, and swelling. Your doctor will discuss all of the risks associated with cataract removal.
- X) Treatment Advancements
Patients used to have to spend at least one night in the hospital due to the amount of trauma the older surgical techniques caused. Additionally, the patient usually had to wear thick corrective lenses after the surgery was performed. Fortunately, many breakthroughs have been made in cataract surgery over the past few decades. Lasers, similar to those used in vision correction surgery such as LASIK, have begun being used to treat cataracts. Now the typical surgery is completed in under two hours and corrective lenses are not required in many cases.
For most patients, recovery from cataract surgery is usually quick. Vision is sometimes blurry after surgery and you will need to arrange for a ride home. While post-surgical issues will vary from person to person, most patients report improvements in their vision in just a few days after surgery and complete recovery typically takes about a month.
- X) Additional Options
Laser cataract surgery, or refractive surgery, offers patients additional options over traditional cataract surgery to further improve your vision. Refractive cataract surgery can also be used to correct for astigmatism, far- and near-sightedness, and refractive aging. The latter includes addressing micro-irregularities, known as “spherical aberrations” that reduce vision sharpness. These procedures can reduce or, in some cases, even eliminate the need for corrective lenses.
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