CATARACT SURGERY: ALL THERE IS TO KNOW

The cataract is an opacification of eye lens that is necessary to focus the images on retina located behind the coloured part of the eye. The cataract is a problem associated with aging that usually arises around the age of 60. In Italy every year around 500 thousands cataract surgeries are performed.

Indeed, the cataract can be treated only by surgery. In this respect the ophthalmologist Dr Pierluigi Piccoli tells us how the cataract removal operation is carried out.

How is cataract removal carried out?

The cataract operation is a major ophthalmological surgery, difficult to perform and of high complexity, althought it is now standardized worldwide. It is performed thanks to sophisticated machines and high quality materials. Given the tiny size of structure to operate the operation is carried out under a microscope, the surgeon makes two or three incisions, the largest is 2.2mm, in the peripheral cornea, injects a viscoelastic substance for tissue protection, practices a circular opening in the anterior capsule, emulsifies and removes the crystalline core and therefore implants a soft folded lens opening into the eyes, injects an antibiotic in anterior chamber and hydrates the incisions that are not sutured.

So, is the operation performed under local or total anesthesia?

In most cases the surgery is performed under topical anesthesia, that is instilling anesthetic drops, or under loco-regional anesthesia. In very rare cases, it happened that the total anesthesia was requested, but we are talking about non-cooperating patients and obviously children.

What are the recovery times for this kind of operation?

The speed of recovery varies depending on the type of cataract and the presence or absence of other diseases.

At the same time of cataract, during this operation can some refraction defects be modified?

Yes, they can be modified.