CATARACK

There are two things you need to consider before having cataract surgery. The first is the experience of your physician, and the second is the quality of the lens to be placed in the eye. If the lens is poor-quality, postoperative problems may occur in the eyes. Cataract is a disease usually seen in middle-aged and older people. However, it is also a disease that occurs in newborn babies, people who have used steroid drugs for a certain period of time, diabetic patients and people who have suffered physical impacts to their eye. Cataract causes certain signs and symptoms including vision loss, blurred vision, loss of night time vision, sensitivity to glare, double vision, fading and yellowing of colors, and difficulty in reading. Apart from these, vision disorders associated with eyeglasses problems are confused with cataracts. If a blurred vision problem experienced when looking from short or long distance is solved by wearing glasses, it is not related to cataract. A cataractous eye sees inefficaciously and blurred despite wearing eyeglasses.

 

How is a cataract surgery performed and how long does it take?

Cataract surgery is a painless procedure that can be performed without injections and anesthesia. Microsurgery is needed in a cataract surgery. In this surgical procedure performed without suturing process, first a 2.2 mm incision is made in the eye. Then the inside of the eye lens that has lost its transparency is cleaned with the help of a device emitting ultrasonic sound waves. The artificial lens is inserted into the eye, and then the surgery is completed without needing to suture the incision site because it involves a small incision. The duration of operation varies depending on the type of cataract. However, it takes 15 to 30 minutes on average. When the preoperative and postoperative periods of cataract surgery are taken into account, the time you will need to spend in the hospital is 3 hours on average.

 

What is the right time for cataract surgery?

Cataract surgery does not require waiting. When a cataract reaches a certain level, our visual acuity becomes poorer to an uncomfortable extent. It would be appropriate to have the surgery when the problem is at that level. If you are in a bad condition such as diabetes and high eye pressure, you may need to be operated at an earlier stage. If you wait for having a cataract surgery, your intra-ocular lens will become opaque as well as harder. It is a little more difficult to break the cataract in cases of hard cataracts. Therefore, it would be best to have the surgery once you notice the cataract.

 

How long does a cataract surgery take, and what is the length of time required to recover from it? Will sutures be placed on my eye?

The length of your recovery period after cataract surgery varies depending on the difficulty level of your surgery and the hardness of the cataract. You begin to see clearly within a couple of days to a week after surgery. With today’s technology, cataract surgeries give very successful results. Since it involves a micro incision, there will be no need to suture the incision on the eye.

 

Can my both eyes be operated in the same cataract surgery? Do I need to stay in the hospital after the surgery?

In cataract surgeries, the possibility of infection should be considered and two eye surgeries should not be performed within the same day. If the both eyes need to be operated, you will have to wait for 2 days for the other operation. There is no need to stay in the hospital after cataract surgery because these surgeries can be applied on an outpatient basis. It will be adequate to rest for a few hours after surgery.

 

Do I need to wear glasses after cataract surgery?

In cataract surgery, a single-focus lens implant is placed on the eye. The lens is adjusted in such a way as to correct distance vision. You will not need to wear eyeglasses for distance vision, but you will need to wear glasses for near vision. As long as you prefer, a multi-focused lens implant can be placed on your eye during cataract surgery. With this lens, you can see both near and far very comfortably.