What is a cataract?
A cataract is a loss of clarity of the eyes natural focusing lens. Most often, this is a normal part of the aging process but it can also be associated with excessive UV exposure, systemic medications and certain disease states.

How would I know if I had a cataract?
Cataracts can cause a variety of visual disturbances. The most common complaints include blurred vision, trouble with glare and bright lights (particularly during night driving), a decrease in vividness of colors and difficulty reading.

Can lasers be used to remove cataracts?
No. Cataracts must be removed surgically, meaning that the surgeon must make an incision into the eye. It is very small (3mm) and usually no sutures are necessary at all. The caract is actually emulsified with high-speed ultrasound using an instrument resembling a dentist's drill. This technique is called phacoemulsification.

Do I need to receive a lens implant (IOL) once I have my cataract removed and if so will I then need glasses?
Once the opaque lens (cataract) is removed it is necessary to have an artificial lens inserted in its place. This is called an intraocular lens implant (IOL). T he tradicional IOL allows for distance vision and patients require glasses just for reading.

Are there bifocal lens implants so that I can avoid glasses completly?
Yes. I have had extensive experience with the ARRAY IOL, which allows patients to significantly decrease and even eliminate the need for glasses after cataract surgery.

Where is the surgery performed and when can I go home?
I operate at the Duracell Ambulatory Surgery Center at Danbury Hospital. The surgery itself takes about 15 minutes and shortly after you will be allowed to return home.

Is the operation painful and will I be awake?
Under the care of highly trained anesthesiologists, you will be given IV sedation to relax you. I will then administer a special anesthetic to numb your eye so that the procedure will be painless.

Will I need any medications once I am home?
Typically, patients require nothing more than Tylenol for postoperative discomfort.

When can I resume normal activities such as work, exercise or driving?
Thanks to the miracle of small incision surgery, I allow you to return to virtually all of your regular activities the day after your operation. Contrary to a common myth, bending is allowed as is driving. Exercise and work may resume with the exception of heavy lifting and contact sports, which may resume in a week.

Will I need eye drops after surgery?
Yes. Antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops will be given to you in our office the day after surgery. A simple color-coded chart will also be provided to simplify your medication routine.

If I need surgery on my other eye, where is that done?
Usually two to four weeks later, although it may be longer.

If I need a prescription change in my glasses when is that done?
Typically a month after surgery, although this may vary.

How long does the lens implant last and does it have to be replaced?
One of. the true miracles of modern ophthalmology, lens implants are permanent and will not wear out or otherwise loose their clarity.

What do I have to look forward to in the future? Will I need additional procedures as a result of the cataract surgery?
It is possible with time a clouding of the capsule may occur. The capsule, a cellophane like material is the other part of the natural lens, which is intentionally left in place to support the new I0L. If the capsule becomes opaque, the vision may become blurred. This can be treated with a laser.

What kind of laser can be used on the capsule and what does it do?
A special laser called a YAG can be used to create a window in the clouded capsule. This totally painless office procedure takes no more than a few minutes to perform on a strictly outpatient basis.

Is there any recovery needed after a YAG laser?
Essentially no. Because the eye is not bandaged, you may even drive home by yourself. As with most laser procedures, visual recovery is very rapid.

I am more frightened about loosing my eyes than anything else. Am I unusual?
I fully understand the degree of fear that many of my patients have when it comes to having delicate eye surgery. Despite having performed many thousands of eye operations, I never forget the fact that beneath me lays a patient with normal fears and apprehension.

For further information, please call Josie Taylor, Surgical Coordinator at Acuity Eye Care.