Cataract surgery in detail
With over 28 million procedures worldwide each year, cataract surgery is one of the most common operations. Usually carried out as an outpatient procedure, this routine operation rarely has complications and has minimal impact on the patient.
When should cataract surgery be carried out?
Previously, medical professions were reserved and only operated when the cataract had matured. Nowadays, we operate as soon as the patient feels that their everyday life is being impacted. Therefore, the time of the operation is determined individually in consultation with your ophthalmologist.
What happens during cataract surgery?
The upper and lower lid are held open with a clip. To ensure the eye does not dry out, moistening drops are regularly applied to the surface of the eye. You can feel the liquid running down.
The operation itself is carried out by the surgeon using a special surgical microscope. After local anaesthesia, the doctor makes a small incision. The procedure is so gentle that this tiny cut doesn’t even require stitches. It simply closes on its own without scarring. Thanks to highly modern procedures, the operation is generally completely pain-free.
The operation:
1. The cloudy lens is liquidised, emulsified (phacoemulsification) and sucked out through an opening that is only around 2mm wide. The surgeon ensures that the lens capsule is undamaged. This protectively surrounds the eye’s lens and will also house the new artificial lens.
2. The intraocular lens is folded by the surgeon before insertion. This means that the cut into the eye can be kept extremely small.
3. The unfolded intraocular lens is held in the capsular bag by small flexible filaments (haptics). The new lens is therefore positioned in the same place as the natural lens.
