HOW IS CATARACT SURGERY PERFORMED?
Although cataracts are not permanently sight-threatening, they can definitely hamper one’s quality of life. Cataract surgery is the removal of the natural lens of the eye (also called “crystalline lens”) that has developed an opacification, which is referred to as a cataract. Metabolic changes of the crystalline lens fibers over the time lead to the development of the cataract and loss of transparency, causing impairment or loss of vision. During cataract surgery, a patient’s cloudy natural lens is removed and replaced with a synthetic lens to restore the lens’s transparency.
Following surgical removal of the natural lens, an artificial intraocular lens implant is inserted (eye surgeons say that the lens is “implanted”). Cataract surgery is generally performed by an ophthalmologist (eye surgeon) in an ambulatory (rather than inpatient) setting, in a surgical center or hospital, using local anesthesia (either topical, peribulbar, or retrobulbar), usually causing little or no discomfort to the patient. Well over 90% of operations are successful in restoring useful vision, with a low complication rate. Outpatient, high volume, minimally invasive, small incision phacoemulsification with quick post-op recovery has become the standard of care in cataract surgery all over the world.
WE CAN HELP YOU DECIDE IF YOU NEED TO PURSUE CATARACT SURGERY AND IF SO, WE WILL REFER YOU TO A TOP CATARACT SURGEON IN THE AREA.
At Lickteig Family Eye Care, we can refer you to local world-renowned cataract surgeons who will perform the surgery and then return you to our office for co-management or, when necessary, conduct your postoperative care until you are ready to return for your annual eye examinations after cataract surgery.