Definition

A cataract is a clouding of the normally clear lens of your eye. Clouded vision can make reading and driving a car difficult. Cataracts commonly affect distance vision and cause problems with glare. They generally do not cause irritation or pain.

Most cataracts develop slowly and don't disturb your eyesight early on. But as the clouding progresses, the cataract eventually interferes with your vision. Fortunately, cataract removal is generally a safe, effective procedure.

Symptoms

A cataract usually develops slowly and causes no pain. At first, the cloudiness may affect only a small part of the lens and you may be unaware of any vision loss. Over time, however, as the cataract grows larger, it clouds more of your lens and distorts the light passing through the lens. Eventually, this impairs your vision because of overall blur or image distortion.

Signs and symptoms of cataracts include clouded, blurred or dim vision, increasing difficulty with vision at night, sensitivity to light and glare, halos around lights and double vision in a single eye.

Cataracts don't typically cause any change in the appearance of your eye. Pain, redness, itching, irritation, aching in your eye or a discharge from your eye aren't signs or symptoms of a cataract, but may be signs and symptoms of other eye disorders.

A cataract isn't dangerous to the physical health of your eye unless the cataract becomes too mature. This can cause glaucoma resulting in inflammation, pain and headache. This type of cataract requires removal as an emergency procedure.

Treatment

Cataract surgery is the commonest type of eye surgery performed. Surgical techniques and instrument technology have advanced over the years and the risks from cataract surgery are very much lower. Modern day cataract surgery is done through a suture-less micro-incision of 1.2 to 2.5 mm under topical anaesthesia. The procedure is generally recommended when cataracts begin to affect your quality of life or interfere with your ability to perform normal daily activities.

It's generally done on an outpatient basis. The procedure takes about fifteen minutes to complete. Stitches are not usually needed and the eye need not be bandaged after surgery. Recovery is fast. You can often resume your normal daily activities the next day. Some patients may choose to have surgery done in both eyes on the same day.

A new lens is placed inside the eye to replace the cataract which has been removed. This may be a monofocal or multifocal type lens. Monofocal lenses allow good distant vision, and reading glasses are worn for near work when using the computer or reading. Multifocal lens implants give a range of useful vision so the patient is much less dependent on glasses. Some patient can experience glare and halos under dim light condition after multifocal lens implant, though these symptoms generally improve with time. Your surgeon will discuss with you the most suitable type of lens implant for you.

Following surgery, antibiotics drops are instilled for up to one month.  Follow-up reviews are scheduled by your doctor the next day and usually at one week and one month thereafter. International patient may travel by air after two to three days.