What Do You Need To Know About Cataract Surgery?
Are you having a difficult time seeing clearly? You might be suffering from cataracts. Here’s all you need to know about cataract surgery.
Even though cataracts are something that usually impacts the elderly, they can actually impact people of any age.
Therefore, it is important for people to work with an eye doctor to learn more about whether cataract surgery is right for them.
What do you need to know about cataract surgery, and how can this help you?
Take a look at some important information below, and remember to talk to your eye doctor about how you can get your cataracts treated and improve your overall quality of life.
How Do You Know If You Need Cataract Surgery?
First, you need to figure out if you have cataracts or some other vision problem. There are a few common signs and symptoms of cataracts.
In general, if you notice cloudy vision, this is a sign that you have cataracts. Usually, you spot these clouds and your vision at night. Then, you might start to see them during the day as well.
Gradually, you may notice these clouds start in the corners of your visual field before they progress over the entirety of your eye.
Sometimes, you may only have cataracts in one eye. In other cases, you may have cataracts in both eyes.
If you notice cloudy vision, you should talk to your eye doctor about whether you have cataracts.
How Is The Surgery Performed?
Cataract surgery is usually performed under general anesthesia. Here is what happens during surgery:
- First, the eye doctor will make a small incision in the cornea.
- Then, the doctor will insert a small tool in the cornea to emulsify the cloudy lens. This is called phacoemulsification.
- After this, the eye doctor will pull out the cloudy lens piece by piece.
There is another type of cataract surgery as well. In this type of surgery, the doctor makes a larger incision in the cornea. The incision is large enough to pull out the entire lens without breaking it apart into small pieces.
Once the old lens is removed, the doctor will insert a new, clean, synthetic lens. This is responsible for improving your vision when you wake up and recover.
What Do You Need To Do Prior To Surgery?
The doctor will give you a list of things you need to do prior to cataract surgery.
For example, because you are undergoing general anesthesia, the eye doctor will probably ask you to avoid eating or drinking the day before the procedure. If the surgery is scheduled for 8 a.m. the next day, the doctor will probably tell you not to eat or drink anything after dinner.
Furthermore, if you wear contact lenses, the doctor may ask you to refrain from putting them in your eyes before the procedure. That way, you don’t have to worry about harming your eyes any further prior to the cataract surgery taking place.
Make sure you follow the instructions of the eye doctor before the procedure.
How Can Ocular Surface Optimization Help You?
The eye doctor should talk to you about ocular surface optimization, which is about protecting the integrity of the surfaces of the eyes prior to cataract surgery.
Ocular surface optimization can make the surgeon’s job easier, increasing the chances of a successful procedure.
For example, you may want to talk to your doctor about Prokera cryopreserved amniotic membrane, as this is one of the most reliable options for helping you correct cataracts.
PROKERA for patients has already helped countless people suffering from cataracts. So it could definitely help you during cataract surgery, allowing you to see clearly.
Make sure you talk to your eye doctor about ocular surface optimization.
How Can You Treat Ocular Surface Disease?
Part of ocular surface optimization is removing signs and symptoms of ocular disease. Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t realize that they suffer from the ocular disease.
If you have been diagnosed with dry eye syndrome, you have one of the most common forms of ocular disease. This has to be treated before measurements are taken for cataract surgery.
Another common form of ocular disease is called keratitis. This is something that can cause inflammation of the corneas, impacting the ability of the doctor to perform cataract surgery.
The ocular surface disease has to be treated before the procedure can start.
What Is The Recovery Process?
After the procedure is done, you’ll need to follow instructions from the doctor related to the recovery process. For example, the doctor will probably ask you to wear an eye shield at night.
Even though this can be annoying, it is important for protecting your eyes as they recover.
The doctor will probably ask you to wear sunglasses when you go outside as well. It is important for you to protect your vision from UV radiation.
The doctor might ask you to refrain from something because chlorine can irritate your eyes.
Finally, the doctor will probably ask you to avoid wearing makeup. That’s because makeup can increase the risk of bacterial infection.
Talk To Your Eye Doctor!
In the end, these are a few high points you need to know about cataract surgery.
It is performed regularly by eye doctors all across the country. Therefore, this can be an effective way for you to treat your cataracts as well.
As people live longer, cataracts will become more common. Therefore, cataract surgery will become more common as well.
There are numerous techniques that are used to correct cataracts, and they can help you improve your vision as well.
If you are ready to see clearly and improve your quality of life, you should talk to your eye doctor about whether cataract surgery can help you.
Remember that ocular surface optimization can help you put this procedure in the best position possible to succeed.