Is Cataract Surgery Safe?
If you have cataracts, you may probably need cataract surgery in Orange County or Los Angeles. It’s a procedure that stores cataract-related vision loss. When your surgeon performs the corrective eye surgery, the clouded lens inside your eye gets replaced with a clear artificial lens. The procedure is entirely painless, and it typically takes around 15 minutes. Normally, it’s an outpatient procedure and you don’t have to stay overnight at the hospital according to the cataract surgeon in Los Angeles and Orange County.
At first, some patients think cataract surgery is scary. However, it’s one of the most risk-free and efficient vision surgeries around today. Every year, millions of cataract surgeries are carried out in the U.S., and many individuals have excellent results. The more senior a person is, the higher the potential need for cataract eye surgery since cataracts usually develop or worsen.
Based on facts from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), cataracts affect
Around 1 in 20 of people aged 50-54
An estimated half of people aged between 75 to 79
More than 2 in 3 people over the age of 80
What Does Cataract Surgery Involve?
The cataract eye surgeon in Orange County and Los Angeles will remove the cloudy lens inside your eye and replace it with a clear artificial lens during surgery. The device that’s used is called an intraocular lens, or IOL for short.
An IOL restores the clear vision you had before the cataracts developed. During any cataract removal in Los Angeles or Orange County, special safety measures are taken to ensure the patient is as pain-free and relaxed as possible. The most a patient will experience is a slight feeling of pressure, but this sensation isn’t painful.
A modern cataract surgery procedure will usually follow these actions:
The surgeon creates a small incision along the side of the cornea.
A high-frequency ultrasound device or laser is utilized to break up the cloudy lens into small fragments carefully.
The lens fragments are carefully removed from the eye using a suction device.
Once all the fragments have been removed, the surgeon puts in the IOL behind the pupil and the colored part of the eye, the iris, in the same place your natural lens used to be.
The incision doesn’t require any stitches to heal.
Your eye surgeon will put a protective shield over your eye to keep it safe during the early stages of recovery.
If you require surgery in both eyes, your cataract surgeon will typically wait for one to three weeks between procedures to allow the first eye to heal.
What Are The Two Different Options For Cataract Surgery?
When you ask for cataract eye surgery cost, you want to know what options you have available for cataract surgery. The most familiar type of cataract removal surgery is known as phacoemulsification, or phaco for short. A phacoemulsification procedure involves high-frequency ultrasound waves to break up the cloudy lens.
Currently, the phaco operation is performed with smaller incisions than ever before, so healing is faster with a much lower risk of complications.
Three main kinds of IOL can be implanted during cataract surgery:
Monofocal lenses – One of the most common options for most surgeries. These may still need the use of eyeglasses or reading glasses after the corrective eye surgery. If prescription glasses are required, your ophthalmologist will prescribe them about a month after surgery. Optionally, presbyopia can be treated by modifying the power of one of your monofocal IOLs to create a condition called monovision.
Accommodating lenses and multifocal lenses – Convenient for individuals who have presbyopia. These lenses can correct your reading vision without surrendering your distance vision. Both of these IOLs offer a huge range of vision after cataract surgery than traditional monofocal lenses.
Extracapsular surgery – rather than break up the cloudy lens with an ultrasound, an eye surgeon will take out the core in one piece, then the rest with a suction device. Extracapsular surgery consists of a longer incision, and antibiotic eye drops before the procedure. This type of cataract surgery procedure is usually only carried out in complicated cases.
Laser cataract surgery, or Refractive Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery (ReLACS), is more contemporary option that utilizes more advanced technology.
Instead of ultrasound energy, a specialized laser is brought in to disrupt the existing cataract. The laser doesn’t need as much energy as an ultrasound, which can lower the risk of complications even more.
In some instances, laser surgery can also enhance visual outcomes.
Laser surgery is usually more pricey than standard phaco cataract surgery. During your cataract removal consultation, your eye surgeon can help you understand which procedure is the most suitable for your individual requirements.
How To Get Ready For Cataract Surgery?
Prior to your scheduled cataract surgery, your eye doctor will carry out a thorough eye exam to evaluate the overall health of your eyes and figure out if anything will prevent you from having surgery.
Also, the ophthalmologist will carry out a refraction test to find out if you’re nearsighted, farsighted, and/or astigmatic prior to surgery. Other measurements of your eyes will be taken to determine the shape of your eye and which type of implantable lens you’ll require.
Before your eye surgery, the medical team will advise you on what to expect before, during and after your procedure. This information will help you to make an informed decision about going forward with surgery.
Your eye doctor will discuss with you any medications and supplements you’re on. Some of these can boost your risk of complications and may need to be stopped for a short time
If you have any queries or concerns about cataract surgery, make sure you talk about them with your cataract surgeon and optometric physician before signing the “informed consent” documents that authorize surgery.
At Excel Laser Vision Institute, we have a team of experienced and dedicated staff easily answer all of your questions and put you at ease about your corrective eye surgery. We only use cutting-edge laser technology to perform cataract surgery, and other vision correction alternatives. Our Harvard-trained surgeon, Dr. Moosa, serves at our Orange County as well as at the Los Angeles offices. Once we assess your prescription and eye health, we can talk about which eye correction treatment is best for you, financing, and the next steps. Begin your journey towards a clear vision that eliminates your dependence on eyeglasses and contact lenses today.
