What happens during a cataract surgery?
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At the hospital or eye clinic, drops are put into your eye to dilate the pupil. The area around your eye is washed and cleansed.
The operation usually lasts less than one hour and is almost painless. Many people choose to stay awake during surgery. Others may need to be put to sleep for a short time.
If you are awake, you are given an anesthetic to numb the nerves in and around your eye.
After the operation, a patch may be placed over your eye. You rest for a while. Your medical team watches for any problems, such as bleeding. Most people who have a cataract surgery can go home the same day. You need someone to drive you home.
This answer is based on source information from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
At the hospital or eye clinic, drops are put into your eye to dilate the pupil. The area around your eye is washed and cleansed. The operation usually lasts less than one hour and is almost painless. Many people choose to stay awake during surgery.... More -
Johns Hopkins Medicine answered:Cataract surgery is almost never an emergency. The decision to have surgery depends on the degree to which your vision is impaired, balanced by the small risk that surgery entails. If cataracts affect both eyes, each eye operation is scheduled and performed separately. Current surgical options include:
- Extracapsular cataract extraction - In this procedure, your current lens is either removed in one piece or its broken up using sound waves (a process called phacoemulsification, or phaco), then extracted through a tiny hollow tube. The normal lens capsule surrounding the lens is left intact.
- Intracapsular cataract extraction - In this technique, both the lens and the lens capsule are removed. This technique is now performed only in rare cases.
Once the lens is removed, it may be replaced by one of three options:
- Intraocular lens (IOL) ? An artificial, plastic lens placed in the eye during cataract surgery. New options today are available for patients who have astigmatism or prefer to have their near sighted (reading) vision improved following cataract surgery. These lenses are called accomodative or multi-focal lenses and are available for an additional cost that is paid by the patient because they are not medically necessary.
- Contact lenses
- Special cataract (aphakic) glasses with very powerful magnification
Currently, 90 percent or more of patients receive an intraocular lens during cataract surgery.
Helpful? 1 person found this helpfulCataract surgery is almost never an emergency. The decision to have surgery depends on the degree to which your vision is impaired, balanced by the small risk that surgery entails. If cataracts affect both eyes, each eye operation is scheduled and... More
