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Cataracts and Cataract
Surgery - Clearing the way to better vision.
Cataract
Surgery
In your parents or grandparents day cataract surgery was
considered risky, required a lengthy hospital stay and was usually postponed
for as long as possible.
Today, at Eye
Health Center of Florida, cataract surgery is performed as an outpatient
procedure and takes only minutes. After the cataract surgery, patients can go
home to rest in comfort, and avoid the inconvenience and expense of staying a
hospital.
About
Cataracts
Over fifty percent of people over the age of 60, and quite a
few younger than that, suffer from cataracts. In fact, cataracts are so common,
it is said that everyone will develop a cataract if they live long
enough.
A cataract is a
progression of clouding of the eye's natural lens that interferes with light
passing through to the retina. Sufferers usually describe the condition as
being similar to looking through a waterfall, or a piece of wax paper, with a
gradual blurring or dimming of vision.
Reading may
become more difficult and driving a car can actually become dangerous. Cataract
sufferers may also be troubled by a bothersome glare, halos around the lights,
or even double vision. And, as the cataract becomes worse, frequent changes in
eyeglass prescriptions may become necessary.
Currently, there
is no medical treatment to reverse or prevent the development of cataracts.
Once they form, there is only one way to achieve clear vision again, and that
is to physically remove the cataract from inside the eye and replace it with an
artificial intraocular lens (IOL).
Advances in
Cataract Surgery
There have been many advances in cataract surgery
techniques and IOL technology in recent years. With over one million cataract
surgery procedures performed each year, many patients now experience a quality
of vision that is even better than before they developed cataracts.
Your cataracts
will be removed with an advanced technique called phacoemulsification or
small-incision cataract surgery. Most people only require topical, 'eye-drop'
anesthesia. After the eye is completely numbed a self-sealing incision of about
1.8" is made in the sclera (white part of the eye), or in the clear cornea
(just about the area where the cornea meets the sclera).
The cataract is
then broken in microscopic particles using high-energy sound waves and gently
suctioned from the eye. Then, to compensate for the removal of eye's natural
lens, an intraocular lens (IOL) is implanted into the "capsular bag", the same
thin tissue that held your natural lens. Once the lens is positioned, the eye
remains tightly sealed by the natural outward pressure within your
eye.
Benefits of
Self-Sealing and Topical Anesthesia
Topical anesthesia and self-sealing
incisions have taken cataract surgery to the next level. Many patients are able
to see with clear vision much sooner after the surgery. In most cases, it is
now possible to return to daily activities, such as driving and reading, almost
immediately. With 'eye-drop' anesthesia, there is no need for a painful needle
injection which delays vision restoration and could cause temporary swelling
and skin discoloration.
The Choice Is
Yours
It can take months or years for a cataract to fully develop. How
do you know when its time to have a cataract removed the answer is quite
simple. The time to have your cataract removed is when you believe your quality
of life would be better if you could see better. Only you can decide when it's
time to open your eyes to a brighter, clear world. |
