Cataracts
A cataract is a clouding of the eye’s natural lens. Cataracts can affect vision in many ways, including:
- Blurred, foggy, or hazy vision
- Sensitivity to glare and bright lights
- Difficulty reading or seeing details, especially in dim light
- Double vision or “ghost” images
- Eye strain or fatigue
Take our Visual Function Assessment questionnaire to see if your cataracts may be affecting your vision.
Cataracts result primarily from the normal aging of the eye, but affect people at different rates and degrees. Risk factors for cataracts include a family history of cataracts, eye injury or disease, smoking, or use of certain medications such as steroids.
For people who are significantly affected by cataracts, cataract surgery may be recommended. During cataract surgery, the cloudy lens is removed and replaced with a clear artificial lens called an intraocular lens (IOL).
Advanced Cataract Surgery
Recent advances in cataract surgery have made surgery safer, more precise, more comfortable, and provided better and faster vision recovery than traditional techniques. Coastal Eye Specialists has long been at the forefront of these advances, and have been leaders in our community in introducing and popularizing many of the latest surgical techniques, equipment, and lenses that are now considered state-of-the art. Coastal Eye’s Medical Director, W. Lee Wan, MD, is also a respected and popular teacher of modern cataract surgery to colleagues as well as ophthalmologists-in-training.
Advanced cataract surgery uses a technique known as phacoemulsification, in which a small ultrasonic probe is used to liquefy and aspirate the cataract. This demanding, technically sophisticated technique allows “minimally-invasive” cataract removal, which provides a greater margin of safety, faster healing, less distortion of the eye, and quicker visual recovery. Today, phacoemulsification has become the standard cataract removal method for most cataract surgeons. Modern foldable intraocular lens (IOL) implants are made of soft, flexible materials (silicone, acrylic, or collagen) that can be inserted through incisions as small as 2 mm. These smaller incisions are self-sealing so that stitches are usually not required. This reduces the risk of bleeding, scarring, and irritation, and allows a more rapid return to normal activities and good vision.
 Intraocular lens (IOL) implant |
These advanced cataract surgery techniques allow most procedures to be performed using topical (eye drop) anesthesia, eliminating the need for injections around the eye. This also allows patients to use the eye immediately after surgery (although vision may still take time to recover), and reduces the need for patching the eye after surgery.
Learn more about Advanced IOL Implants
If you think you might have cataracts, call Coastal Eye Specialists at (805) 983-0700 to schedule a cataract consultation. Take our Visual Function Assessment questionnaire before your consultation and bring it with you.
The Surgical Experience
Before surgery, a pre-op exam is needed to verify that you are a suitable candidate for surgery. Measurements are taken to help select the optimal IOL for your eye. Drops are usually started a few days before surgery. Cataract surgery is performed as an outpatient at one of our affiliated Medicare-approved outpatient surgery centers.
When you arrive at the center, you will be given drops to prepare the eye. The actual surgery typically takes about 10 minutes, but you will be at the center for several hours for pre- and post-operative care. Surgery is usually done with sedation, given intravenously, to help you feel relaxed and comfortable. Most patients are not put completely to sleep, as the surgeon wants you to be awake so you can cooperate and hold still during the brief and comfortable procedure. During the surgery, you may hear noises and feel some touch around the face and eyes, but there is rarely any pain or unpleasant sensation.
After surgery, you will be kept for 15-30 minutes in the recovery room to allow the sedation to wear off. You will be sent home with sunglasses to help reduce light sensitivity (which is common for the first few days), and will be given a protective shield to cover the eye when you are sleeping. You can bend over and lift things immediately after surgery, as long as you don’t strain excessively or allow blood to rush to your head. Avoid rubbing or bumping the eye, and keep it clean and dry for the first week. You will be on eye drops for several weeks after surgery to prevent infection and speed healing.
If your other eye needs surgery, it can be done after the first week, once we see that the first eye is healing as expected. Glasses, if needed, can be prescribed anytime after surgery, but typically we encourage waiting several weeks to ensure that the prescription is stable.
To learn more about cataracts, please call 805-983-0700 today to schedule a consultation.
