CATARACT
What is a Cataract?
A cataract is a progressive clouding of eye's natural lens that interferes with light passing through the retina.
Over fifty percent of people over the age of 60 and quite a few younger than that suffer from cataracts.
Symptoms of Cataract
With a clear normal lens, the images are focused clearly on the retina. Vision is clear. With a cataract, the lens is cloudy, causing the image to become blurred and yellowed. Reading may become more difficult and driving a car can actually become dangerous. Cataract sufferers may also be troubled by bothersome glare, halos around lights, or even double vision.
Treatment Options
Currently, there is no treatment to reverse or prevent the development of cataracts. Once they form, the only way to achieve clear vision again is to physically remove the cataract from the eye.
The “No Needle No Stitch” Steps of the Surgery
Before cataract surgery the lens is cloudy, causing images to be blurred and yellowed. Vision is hazy and colors are faded. After surgery, the new replacement lens provides a clear and focused image on the retina. Vision is sharp.
Today, at our Sheepshead Bay Cataract and Laser Surgery Center , cataract surgery is performed on an outpatient basis, uses a local anesthetic, and takes only a few minutes. In most cases, the cataract is broken into microscopic particles using high-energy sound waves and then gently suctioned from the eye by an advanced technique call phacoemulsification. This surgery is performed though a very small incision which is usually self-sealing, requiring no sutures. To compensate for the removal of the eye's natural lens, an intro-ocular lens (IOL), custom to each patient's visual needs, is implanted into the eye.
Еveryone heals somewhat differently, but many cataract patients report an improvement in their vision right away. Most patients return to their normal work and lifestyle routines within a few days.
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