Eye Conditions:
Cataracts

A cataract is the clouding of the natural lens in the eye resulting in a decrease in your vision. The lens is behind the colored part of your eye (iris) and it is about the size of your pinky nail and shaped like a magnifying glass lens. Until your 40's, this lens is what allowed you to adjust your sight from distances to up close without reading glasses or bifocals. As you age it gradually thickens first losing its adjusting power then clouding over in your later years. Sun exposure may speed the process as well.

Everyone develops cataracts if they live long enough. Diabetes, an injury to an eye, glaucoma, certain medications and a few rare inherited problems may cause cataracts to form earlier than in your 60's or 70's which is the typical age for cataracts to appear. On rare occasions a child is born with a cataract. The treatment of visually significant cataracts is the same for all cases, however. The surgical removal of your natural lens and its replacement with a plastic lens implant.

When should a person consider surgery and what is a visually significant cataract? It is time to consider surgery when your best vision with glasses is reduced to a level where the activities of your daily life are significantly affected. For example, you can no longer drive legally due to glare or read comfortably without a very bright light. Early on in the development of a cataract adjusting your glasses prescription may help to improve your vision. Eventually new glasses will no longer help and surgery would be your only option to improve your vision.

Cataract surgery is one of the most frequently performed of all surgeries and boasts one of the highest success rates. It is performed on an outpatient basis in an operating room under sterile conditions. Local anesthesia is used except in rare instances, so you are awake during the surgery which is typically pain free. Contrary to popular belief, cataract surgery is NOT done with a laser. Our surgery is done with the latest microsurgical techniques such as ultrasound (phacoemulsification) and other techniques which break up the cataract into small pieces so the removal can be performed through a small opening into your eye. This helps speed healing with a return to good vision and your ability to perform your normal daily activities.

After the surgery you can not touch or rub your eye for at least a month and you should not bend over at the waist for a week. You will need to use eye drops to prevent infection and scarring for a few weeks. Depending on your glasses prescription before surgery and the vision in your other eye, you may be able to drive safely in a few days after surgery or you may have to wait up to a few weeks. The recovery process is typically pain free, however occasionally you may feel like your eye is dry or that there is an eyelash in it. Most people need to continue to wear glasses after surgery because the implants do not correct for astigmatism nor is there a bifocal built into the new lens.

There are risks with cataract surgery as with any operation. There is a small but real risk of infection, retinal detachment or scarring which could permanently reduce your vision. Other risks include the dislocation of the lens implant, the development of glaucoma (pressure in the eye), bleeding and clouding of the surface layer of the eye (cornea). This list is incomplete and at the time of your surgery your surgeon will discuss the risks which would apply to your particular situation. Drs. Garfinkle and Scott have each performed thousands of cataract surgeries and have more than 15 years experience with the most modern techniques.

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