Is It Time for Cataract Surgery? Cataract Awareness Month

Being diagnosed with a vision-threatening condition can not only be upsetting and alarming, but also lead to lots of difficult questions. Fortunately, cataracts, although vision threatening, are a slower to progress condition that allows time to consider and weigh questions such how much are my cataracts affecting my daily life and as when is the right time to have cataract surgery. So for this Cataract Awareness Month, we’re considering the question, “Is it time for cataract surgery?”
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If you’ve been diagnosed with a cataract in one eye or cataracts in both eyes, your eye doctor has likely discussed managing your symptoms with conservative measures such as new prescription lenses, brighter lighting, anti-glare sunglasses, and magnifying lenses. The hope is that those measures will allow you and your eye doctor to manage your symptoms and vision loss until it’s time for cataract surgery. But when is that time?
 
There are a couple of signs that it’s time to start considering for cataract surgery more seriously, each of which we’ll examine below.

Interference with Everyday Activities

​If the symptoms of cataracts can no longer be managed conservatively and vision loss is interfering with everyday activities, it may be time to consider cataract surgery. Everyday activities are those things we need to do to function and live normally, such as reading, driving, watching TV, cooking, and getting around safely.
 
Cataract surgery can improve one’s quality of life, as well as make it safer. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), benefits of cataract surgery include:

• 40% lower mortality risk for patients who had cataract surgery
• 16% decrease in odds of hip fractures after cataract surgery
• 13% decrease in odds of car crashes after cataract surgery
• 21% gain in quality of life after cataract surgery in one eye
• 36% gain in quality of life after cataract surgery in two eyes

 
Because of the benefits, safety, and effectiveness associated with cataract surgery, more people are having cataract surgery each year and at a younger age, according to AAO. 

Limitations in Eye Examinations or Other Eye Treatment

If cataracts are preventing the examination or treatment of another eye problem, it may be time to have cataracts removed. While cataracts threaten vision slowly over time, other eye conditions such as certain types of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) can threaten vision quickly and may cause irreversible eye and vision damage if not evaluated and treated immediately. As such, it is important for your eye doctor to be able to evaluate your eyes completely. If your cataracts are more advanced and are blocking or preventing your eye doctor from seeing the important structures in the back of your eye such as your retina, macula, and optic nerve, you may need to have your cataracts removed to allow your eye doctor to preform a complete eye examination. 
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Cataract Surgery Safety & Effectiveness

According to the National Eye Institute (NEI), “Cataract removal is one of the most common operations performed in the United States. It is also one of the safest and most effective types of surgery. In about 90 percent of cases, people who have cataract surgery have better vision afterward.” While surgery is nearly always a last resort measure for treating any condition, it’s comforting to know that cataract surgery is considered to be safe and effective.
 
In the last post in this Cataract Awareness Month series, we’ll talk about cataract surgery further and take a detailed look at small incision cataract surgery and whether it’s right for you.  

Consult with a Cataract Surgeon 

​If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with cataracts, are considering cataract surgery, and would like to discuss surgery with an ophthalmologist who specializes in the treatment of cataracts, please call us to schedule an appointment with our cataract surgeon, Dr. Richard Strecker. Dr. Strecker is available to answer your questions, discuss the surgical procedure and associated risks, and speak with you to determine if it might be time for cataract surgery. 
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