Cataracts are one of the most common eye diseases, and many people of advanced age suffer from cataracts. In mild cases, it only slightly affects vision, while in severe cases, it must be treated with surgery. In order to give you an initial understanding of cataracts, we will make a brief introduction.
I. What is a cataract?
There is a lens in our eye, which is like a lens of a camera and helps to focus. When the lens becomes cloudy, it is called a cataract. A mild clouding of the lens that does not affect vision is not clinically significant, while a clouding that causes vision loss is considered a clinically significant cataract.
How do cataracts occur?
There are many causes of cataracts, such as age-related changes, drugs, trauma, metabolic diseases, etc., and aging is the most common cause.
3.What are the symptoms of cataract?
The patient’s sensitivity to light and color will also be reduced due to the clouding of the lens, but generally there will be no redness and pain in the eyes. Cataracts can also cause glare, temporary myopia, monocular diplopia and other symptoms.
Cataract treatment Drugs: There is no drug that has been proven to be effective in delaying, preventing or treating cataract.
Surgery: Nowadays, the most commonly used procedure is ultrasonic emulsion lens aspiration combined with implantation of an income-based lens, which has the advantages of fewer complications, faster healing and quicker vision recovery, but the final choice of the procedure depends on the patient’s specific situation.
V. When can I receive cataract surgery?
At present, due to the improvement of medical technology, the timing of cataract surgery treatment has been greatly advanced. Generally speaking, cataract surgery can be considered when it has a significant impact on the patient’s daily life or work. Usually, according to the patient’s need for vision, the surgeon’s surgical experience and the hospital’s equipment, surgery can be performed when the vision drops below 0.2-0.3. For some people with special requirements for vision or for certain special types of cataracts, surgery can be considered when the vision is 0.5-0.6 or more.
6. How to prevent cataract?
There is no fundamental prevention method for senile cataracts, but it is believed that ultraviolet light exposure and poor dietary structure can cause cataracts to occur early. The use of fresh fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C and vitamin E can delay the development of cataracts; wearing sunglasses in summer also has a certain protective effect. Wearing sunglasses in summer is also protective. Using appropriate protective measures at work and not giving children sharp objects to play with can reduce the occurrence of traumatic cataracts. These measures can prevent congenital cataract to a certain extent.
VII. What is IOL implantation?
The so-called IOL implantation surgery is to improve the vision of some people after cataract surgery.
After cataract surgery, some patients do not improve their vision significantly. The main reasons are as follows: short-term factors affecting vision are mainly temporary postoperative corneal edema, which can be caused by preoperative eye disinfection, intraoperative use of ultrasound energy, etc., and can be recovered within a few days; long-term factors affecting vision include corneal leukoplakia, optic nerve atrophy, retinitis pigmentosa, retinal detachment, macular degeneration and other ocular pathologies, which can be further helped by visiting the appropriate specialist after cataract surgery.