As with any surgery, pain, infection, swelling and bleeding are possible, but very few patients have serious problems or cataract surgery complications. Your surgeon may prescribe medications for these effects. Retinal detachment also occurs in a few people. Be on the lookout for excessive pain, vision loss, or nausea, and report these symptoms to your eye surgeon immediately

Surgery is the only effective way to remove a cataract. The time to have cataract surgery is when the cataract causes a decrease in your vision that interferes with your normal daily activities. These activities would include driving at night, reading, watching TV, artwork, etc. Cataract surgery is one of the most successful of all types of surgeries. The vision that is reduced as a result of your cataracts should be restored after successful cataract surgery. Depending on the amount of your astigmatism, it can also be dealt with at the time of surgery. Surgery can be performed whenever visual needs require it.

Local anesthesia, often administered as eye drops at the beginning of the procedure, takes care of the any pain due to forming the incision, removing the lens, and implanting the intraocular lens (IOL). There may be minor pain during the healing process, but it should be relieved by non-prescription drugs such as acetaminophen or aspirin.

A detailed checkup and evaluation by an ophthalmologist is required for patients with a history of chronic conditions or on anti-coagulants in order to determine if they are suitable candidates for the cataract procedure. Due to the fact that local anesthesia is usually administered in the surrounding areas of the eyes for the procedure, patients with diabetes or hypertension need to keep their blood sugar and blood pressure under control prior to the procedure. Under normal circumstances, a physician may perform the procedure with prior evaluation and approval and the patient need not be worried.

Give your insurance company a call and talk to a representative to get more information.
In most cases the cost of treatment is covered by health insurance plans. However, the type of surgery and lens you choose may raise the cost of your cataract treatment. Your insurance may not fully cover these advanced types of IOLs. Most often, insurance offers to pay the cost of a conventional IOL, and the patient is responsible for paying the difference. Contact your health care provider for more information about cataract surgery.

For patients with a cataract who also has myopia or hyperopia, astigmatism, or presbyopia, a multi-focal or multi-purpose artificial lens may be selected during a cataract procedure in order to correct visual acuity at the same time.

It takes around 20 minutes to complete one eye. The duration, however, may be longer or shorter, depending on the condition of cataracts of each patient.

The pupil of a patient with severe cataracts appears to be yellow or white. Nevertheless, generally speaking, detailed diagnoses by a professional eye doctor are required for patients with cataracts in order to have a precise idea of how turbid the artificial lens is.

There are no drops or food available so far to prevent against or treat cataracts. Despite the presence of anti-cataract drops on the market, they work mainly to delay the occurrence of cataracts instead of curing them. Cataract surgery is a way to effectively treat cataracts available at the moment.

This depends on which artificial lens is chosen to be inserted. If an astigmatic multi-focal artificial lens is inserted, one generally does not need to wear glasses as his/her visual acuity is good at a long or a short distance. On the contrary, if a traditional mono-focal artificial lens is inserted, the patient usually does not need to wear glasses or contact lenses when looking at something in the distance. Presbyopic glasses, however, are required when the patient is reading newspapers or something in the mobile phone, things involving a short distance. Visual acuity, nevertheless, varies due to the different body compositions and the recovery length of individuals.

In principle, it is allowed. Nevertheless, a detailed checkup and assessments by a physician are required prior to the surgery in order to select a corrective solution suitable for you.

The original posterior capsule is kept for all cataract procedures that are available at the moment in order to facilitate placement of the artificial lens. For a few people, the posterior capsule might thicken again following the surgery to result in blurry vision, which is referred to as after cataract. It is not the re-generation of cataracts. If this happens after surgery, it can be treated with laser to bring back visual acuity. There is no need to go through another procedure or have the artificial lens replaced again.

Generally speaking, most people can live a normal life the days following the surgery. This, however, may vary somewhat from person to person in reality given the different body compositions. It is advised that you avoid any busy and heavy activities for a period of around 2 weeks and follow the physician’s instructions by attending scheduled visits. If you experience any discomfort, please return for a visit as soon as possible.