Doctors Who Do Cataract Surgery
You may remember your parents or grandparents having cataract surgery. In those days, it was a big deal. The surgery had much higher risk and required a hospital stay of several days. Today, cataract surgery is much lower risk. At Elmquist Eye Group, our doctors who do cataract surgery have both the experience and technology that make this procedure quick, easy and very low risk.
What is the surgery like?
Our cataract surgeons perform the operation on an outpatient basis. The entire procedure takes less than an hour and is one of the most successful medical procedures performed. The state-of-the-art procedure is known as phacoemulsification. The technique breaks up the cloudy material on your natural lens, then we replace it with an artificial lens. The overwhelming majority (98%) of patients are free of surgical complications and experience long-lasting results.
On the day of surgery, we ask you to arrive about an hour before the procedure. We will sedate you to help you relax, then clean the area around your eye. We will use numbing drops in your eye and an eyelid holder to keep you from blinking.
The surgeon will create a very small incision. Then the cataract will be broken up into small particles and suctioned away. Next, we will position the artificial intraocular lens (IOL). The small incision has no stitches and will heal very quickly by itself.
What is recovery like?
After the surgery, we want you to stay with us for about an hour in the recovery room. As the anesthesia wears off, we want to make sure you are doing ok. You cannot drive yourself home; someone will need to drive you home.
The best part is that you do get to go home shortly after the surgery. We ask that you relax for the remainder of that day. While everyone does heal differently, most of our patients experience vision improvement that same day. You can return to most normal activities in a couple of days, with some other limited restrictions like working out, jogging or heavy lifting for about two weeks as the new lens heals. Most patients can return to reading or watching TV the day after surgery.
We will give you eye drops to prevent your eye from getting infected. You need to use them several times per day and keep water out of your eye.
The surgeon will most likely ask you to come in the day after surgery as well as a week later to determine your progress. You will have one final check a few weeks after surgery.
Choosing Doctors Who Do Cataract Surgery
Most patients are amazed at how well their vision improves after surgery. They are no longer seeing through a waterfall, as most patients describe vision with cataracts. Post-surgery, patients see colors more vividly and also see much finer details than they did before. Their vision is even better than they expected it to be.
Give us a call today at Elmquist Eye Group. The training and experience of our doctors who do cataract surgery is top notch. We will answer all your questions during your initial consultation at one of our many convenient locations. Don’t delay; contact us today.