Surgery for cataract is usually a quick procedure done with the modern technology of small incision phacoemulsification (read the chapter ‘Understanding cataract’ in Eyesite.org). After an incision in the eye has been made, the cloudy natural lens will be removed with the phacoemulsification device and replaced with a plastic lens implant, made from a variety of pure medical-grade plastics such as acrylics or silicone. The procedure is normally done under local anaesthesia (either anaesthetic eye drops are used which is Dr Simon Levy’s preference or alternatively a gentle injection is given into the tissue around the eye) so that the patient remains awake but no in discomfort during the eye procedure. Small incision surgery for cataracts is one of the best surgical treatments available, gifting patients a return to normal vision and greatly enhancing their lives.
For readers interested in eye surgery history, phacoemulsification technology was preceded by ‘extracapsular’ cataract extraction in which a large incision was made in the eye wall, the cloudy cataract lens was manually removed from the eye ( ‘removed from’ sometimes resembling ‘squeezed out of’) and a lens implant was then inserted followed by five or more sutures. If this sounds less than satisfactory – now read about extracapsular cataract surgery’s precursor! When ‘intracapsular’ cataract extraction was the vogue (it only ceased usage as a routine cataract surgery procedure in about 1985) an enormous (at least in eye surgery terms) incision was made in the eye wall, following which a pair of forceps was inserted inside the eye and used to grip the cloudy lens and pull it out in one go. Just thinking about it makes Eyesite’s eye surgeon Simon Levy feel queezy! It was very difficult to safely implant an intraocular lens when intracapsular cataract surgery had been done which is why the procedure was phased out in favour of extracapsular cataract surgery. Happily of course both technologies are now completely redundant.
Eyesite.org provides high-technology, ultra-small incision phacoemulsification surgery for cataracts. Call 020 8951 1951 today to schedule an appointment.
