Surgery

The cataract operation is still the only way of curing the restriction of vision caused by a clouding over of the lens. The right time for cataract surgery is determined primarily by the extent of the reduction in vision. An increasing amount of significance is attached today to the restrictions in people's day to day lives due to reduced vision, such as an inability to read or increased sensitivity to car headlamps when driving at night or during bad weather. There is no objectively or medically correct time to carry out an operation. Nor is it necessary for the cataract to achieve "particular maturity" before it can be operated on.

The cataract operation itself takes place in two stages:

1. The surgical removal of the cloudy parts of the lens:

After a tiny incision in the cornea, a circular opening is made in the front capsule of the lens. The affected parts of the lens are liquefied and drawn off using a high-precision ultrasound device. The rear part of the lens capsule is preserved. This is essential for fixing the artificial lens to be implanted.

2. Implantation of the flexible artificial lens:

As the eye cannot generate a focussed image without a lens, the removed lens must be replaced by an artificial one. Today flexible lenses are usually used as these allow an even smaller implantation opening than the formerly used rigid lenses. The refractive power of the artificial lens inserted is determined individually for each patient before the operation by measuring the cornea and the length of the eyeball.

Complications in connection with cataract surgery are extremely rare. Where they do occur, they are easily manageable. In some rare cases there may be a slight increase in light sensitivity after some weeks or months.

After surgery

Every patient in the clinic receives exhaustive information about the further course of treatment and about what they need to do following the operation. To protect against contact and to support the healing process, the eye remains covered with a bandage for the first day and night after the operation. Heavy physical work and anything that might strain the eye should be avoided in the first few days.
The course of healing is checked on the day after the operation and then a number of times over the next six weeks. It is important that the patient takes the prescribed eye drops. The check-ups after the operation are generally done by the eye doctor who referred the patient to the clinic.

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Cataracts

Cataracts - operation