Cataracts are the main cause of blindness in China, with nearly 5 million people suffering from cataracts. Do cataracts require surgery only when you can’t see? Do IOLs have a life span?
Many misconceptions are becoming the main cause of blindness among cataract patients. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Health, the number of elderly cataract patients in China has reached 35 million, of which nearly 5 million are blind due to cataract, and the number of cataract patients is increasing at an annual rate of more than 8%, with an average of 500,000 patients per year.
“Cataract is a painless, intraocular lens clouding disease. The clouded lens blocks the entry of light, resulting in blurred vision that, in the long run, can lead to blindness.” Cataracts should be considered for surgery as long as they affect the patient’s normal life and work. If left untreated, complications such as glaucoma and uveitis may be induced, resulting in irreversible damage to the patient’s vision and even blindness.
There is no drug that can “cure” cataracts. 63-year-old Master Zhang has been suffering from cataracts in his left eye for many years, and has been treated with drugs for fear of surgery. Recently, he felt pain in his left eye and went to Ningbo Yinzhou Eye Hospital for a checkup and found that his left eye had dissolved due to overripe cataract, causing secondary glaucoma, uveitis and corneal endothelial loss, making it difficult to regain his sight and only surgery to solve the pain.
“There are many cases of blindness in cataract patients like Master Zhang, and most of the patients are delayed by the fear of surgery and the use of medication.” Yinzhou Eye Hospital President Zhou Hongjian said that the exact cause of cataract is still inconclusive, aging, genetics, malnutrition, trauma, systemic metabolic and endocrine disorders, certain inflammatory diseases in the eye can cause damage to the lens capsule membrane or disorders of lens metabolism, so that the lens protein degeneration, the formation of clouding.
In response to the current situation that many elderly people are reluctant to undergo surgery and prefer to spend money on various health products or drugs that claim to be able to “cure” cataract, Zhou Hongjian said, “So far there is no drug in the world that can cure cataract, and surgery is still the only effective method. “
Cataracts cause high rate of blindness? There are many misconceptions and lack of knowledge about cataracts, which has become a stumbling block on the road to cataract treatment.
Myth 1: IOLs are not long in coming? Zhou Hongjian said that IOLs are used after cataract surgery to replace the removed cloudy crystals, and their physical and chemical properties are so stable that patients can use them for life.
Myth 2: Only old people suffer from cataracts? “The elderly are prone to cataracts due to the decline of body metabolic functions and the formation of cloudiness due to disorders in lens cell metabolism.” There are many causes of cataracts. In addition to the common old age factor, congenital, trauma, diabetes, drugs and radiation can also cause cataracts.
Myth #3: Cataracts don’t get surgery until you can’t see? “When cataract reaches an advanced stage, the lens expands or even dissolves, which then causes glaucoma and can lead to irreversible blindness.” The more advanced a cataract develops, the more difficult its surgery is, the more complications there are, and the slower the recovery of vision.
Myth 4: Cataract surgery is painful? Some cataract patients worry that it is dangerous to operate on their eyes, so they delay the surgery again and again and miss the golden time for treatment. In fact, there are many different methods of cataract surgery, some of which take only a few minutes to complete and are particularly quick to recover after surgery.
To prevent cataracts, it is recommended that the general public should pay attention to avoiding strong sunlight, maintaining a nutritious and balanced diet, actively treating other related eye diseases, and preventing damage to the eyes from mechanical factors and radiation.