Myth 1: “Eye drops can cure cataracts”
It is common to see advertisements on TV selling eye drops that specialize in cataracts, and some claim that cataracts can be cured by eye drops alone, is this true?
“For early cataracts, we do prescribe some eye drops according to the patient’s needs, but such eye drops can only play a role in delaying the development of the disease, and cannot treat, let alone cure it.”
The progression of cataract from early stage to maturity is originally a process, and if it is not accompanied by related systemic diseases, the progression is overall slow, and the impact of early cataract on vision can be compensated by wearing glasses,, so even if the condition is delayed, it is not necessarily the effect of drugs. And for patients with cataracts that are nearing maturity, medication does not make any sense. Currently, the only effective way to cure cataracts is surgery.
Myth 2: “Cataracts can only be operated when they are mature”
“It’s actually very unfortunate to come to the hospital for surgery only when you meet many grandparents and mothers in the hospital whose cataracts are so severe that they can’t even basically see anymore.”
In fact, compared with the past, surgical techniques and equipment have developed by leaps and bounds, and the results are increasingly satisfactory. Generally speaking, if a cataract is found during a physical examination, a regular eye examination should be done in the hospital. If the vision decreases and the cataract affects the patient’s normal work and life, surgery can be performed after excluding the corresponding contraindications.
Overly mature cataracts may induce glaucoma, uveitis and other eye diseases, and increase the difficulty of surgery and affect the effect of surgery. Dr. Zhao does not recommend patients to delay surgery until the cataract is overripe.
Myth 3: “Cataract surgery is easy to be infected in summer”
Many patients are worried that the easy sweating in summer will affect the surgical results and post-operative recovery, which is actually completely unnecessary. “Our surgeries are performed in a completely sterile, constant temperature operating room, and the surgical environment is actually the same depending on the season.”
After surgery, as long as you follow the doctor’s instructions to order eye drops on time, avoid sweating into your eyes, and don’t rub your eyes with your hands, you generally won’t get an infection.
If it is said that cooler seasons like autumn are good for post-operative recovery, it is only in terms of psychological comfort for patients. In general, with the current medical conditions, the influence of season on cataract surgery is almost nil, and the most important thing is early treatment.
Myth 4: “Cataract surgery is dangerous”
Some elderly people worry that it is dangerous to have surgery when they are too old, and even give up treatment because of this, but this worry is not necessary. Before the surgery, doctors usually give the patient a general examination to exclude contraindications to surgery, and also perform eye examinations including visual acuity and visual function examination, intraocular pressure examination, retinal function examination, corneal curvature examination, etc., and control systemic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease, etc. As long as the systemic indicators meet the conditions for surgery, the safety factor of surgery is very high regardless of age. The “In our hospital there are often elderly people in their 90s who come for cataract surgery, and it is not uncommon for centenarians.”
At present, the main use of 1.8mm micro-incision cataract ultrasound emulsion extraction combined with IOL implantation, the risk is very small, the operation is operated under a microscope, compared with the previous cataract surgery methods, the incision is small, high efficiency, surgical safety, better results, patients who meet all indicators can operate with confidence. The introduction of the most advanced femtosecond laser technology provides a real guarantee for the safety and precision of cataract surgery.
Myth 5: “Vision will definitely get better after cataract surgery”
The eye is like a precision camera, and cataract is like a problem with the lens of the camera, which can be replaced through surgery. But the imaging of a camera is not only related to the lens, but also related to the film and so on.
Some elderly people have cataracts, glaucoma, fundus disease and other eye diseases, just like the film of a camera has problems. For this kind of patients, if they just have cataract surgery, their vision may not necessarily be improved after the surgery because of the problems in the fundus, so these people should also have a detailed examination of the fundus before the surgery.
Myth 6: Some elderly people worry that their high myopia will affect the efficacy of surgery
We have encountered many patients with high myopia combined with cataracts in the clinic. As long as the fundus is in good condition and the post-operative vision is predicted to be improved, they can undergo surgery, and a cataract surgery can also reduce the post-operative myopia to 200 to 300 degrees by adjusting the IOL.
During the surgery, we need to replace the original aging natural crystal with an IOL. Nowadays, there are many types of crystals that can be chosen according to the needs, and some new materials and designs of crystals can improve the visual quality of patients after surgery, and they can also have other different functions while improving the patients’ vision.
Myth #7: “Cataracts can recur”
After cataract surgery is completed, some patients may experience clouding of the posterior capsule membrane due to the proliferation of epithelial cells in the posterior capsule of the lens and other reasons. But recurrence is not scary at all. “Recurrence is actually the clouding of the capsule membrane of the IOL again after surgery and affects vision. Compared to cataract, treatment of recurrence is simpler, laser treatment can be done, and the process is only 2 minutes, without going into the operating room for surgery.”