Cataract is when the eye’s naturally clear lens becomes clouded. Most cataracts develop as the result of the natural process of aging but some of them may be present at birth or can develop as a consequence of physical, drug, or chemical injury. Cataract surgery can successfully and safe clear up the cloudiness.
Cataract surgery
Most cataract surgeries are done with an advanced technique called phacoemulsification. During the surgery harder centre section of the lens is liquefied and then vacuumed out. Doctors usually won’t remove cataracts in both eyes at the same time. You will need to schedule separate surgery few weeks later.
Under local anaesthesia, a surgeon performing phacoemulsification makes:
- A small opening on the side of cornea.
- Inserts a device into the eye and breaks the lens into small pieces by ultrasound vibrations
- The fragments are then removed through the small cut in the eye.
Your eye surgeon may use a laser to make the cut, because more precise cut will further improve recovery from this surgery.
During the procedure, called “intraocular lens implantation” the surgeon replaces the cataract with a new, man-made lens called an intraocular lens or IOL.
The IOL is made of clear plastic, acrylic, or silicone with an optical power chosen by the surgeon to help restore normal vision. This lens is permanent and needs no special care.
The IOL helps to improve your vision and you probably will need a new eyeglass prescription. However, most people can see fairly well at a distance without glasses after modern cataract surgery.
Cataract surgery is done as an ambulatory procedure in an operating room, so you don’t need a hospitalization. General anaesthesia (breathing tube and fully asleep) is rarely used with cataract surgery.
The advantages of this treatment are:
- high degree of safety;
- small injury of eye during the surgery;
- low probability of complications;
- less complications after the surgery;
- possible to carry out the surgery at early stage;