Cataract surgery
Caractar is linked to a clouding of the lens in the eye responsible for your sharp vision called the lens.
This lens allows you to adjust the sharpness of your distance and near vision throughout your life with or without glasses.
With age – generally around 40 years old – the adjustment becomes more difficult and near vision requires assistance with glasses. This is called presbyopia.
Around the age of 60, then comes a progressive opacification of the lens. This is what we call cataract.
When you have cataracts your vision may be impaired. The first signs of the appearance of cataracts before the loss of vision appear as follows:
- A loss of contrast requiring more light to read
- Dazzle in front of light sources making night driving difficult
- A change in color vision
Then vision becomes blurred and intervention is necessary.
Cataract surgery is the only treatment to resolve this loss of vision.
This operation consists of replacing the cataract with an artificial lens placed in the eye.
All these surgeries are performed in an operating theater in Geneva specialized in ophthalmologie. After local anesthesia, the surgeon performs the lens change.
The operation lasts on average 30 minutes and is painless for the patient.
In just one week your vision is restored and a new prescription for glasses can be given to you according to the objectives discussed with the doctor.
In some cases a premium multifocal implant is chosen to allow you the greatest possible independence in glasses.
What is a cataract?
Caractar is age-related degeneration of the lens of the eye leading to opacification.
In general this disease causes a loss of vision from the age of 60, but sometimes earlier when it is linked to an illness or trauma.
Risk factors are: smoking, exposure to the sun, prolonged taking of medicationssuch as corticosteroids.
Cataracts cause a reduction in vision, making reading, driving and daily life more difficult.
This affects the entire lens or only its posterior part, making the loss of vision more or less disabling.
Generally, it affects both eyes quite symmetrically. Without surgery, the cataract continues to evolve until it causes a total loss of vision.
It is therefore the leading cause of blindness in developing countries. Fortunately, a simple operation can completely restore your vision.
How does cataract surgery work?
This is a very common operation carried out in the operating room. Doctor Bela collaborates with the best clinics specializing in ophthalmology in Geneva.
The operation is most often done on an outpatient basis and does not require hospitalization.
You will therefore be asked to go to the clinic one hour before the operation and to fast for 12 hours.
You will be welcomed in the clinic with which Doctor Bela collaborates in Geneva and you will be asked to submit the preoperative file, in particular the anesthesia questionnaire including the list of your medications and your allergies.
You will then be given an operating room outfit and you will then be welcomed by the operating room nurses as well as the anesthetist who will accompany you into the room.
After instilling anesthetic drops into the eye to avoid any pain, the anesthesiologist applies light sedation intravenously for your greatest comfort.
The eye is then disinfected and your face is covered with a sterile field by the eye doctor.
The operation is painless and patients generally describe the perception of a strong light or colors in the eye.
This surgery lasts on average 30 minutes. Through two millimeter incisions in the cornea, the surgeon replaces your clouded lens under a microscope with an artificial lens tailor-made for your visual needs.
A bandage will be left on your eye for a few hours and your vision will immediately become clearer and gradually sharper.
Checks are carried out regularly by the doctor and will result in the prescription of a definitive pair of glasses according to the vision objectives discussed during the consultation.
Before cataract surgery
Before cataract surgery, a complete assessment is carried out in consultation by the doctor.
This assessment initially allows additional examinations to be carried out in order to obtain all the anatomical parameters of your eye: its length, its curvature, its optical power.
This also makes it possible to eliminate all other eye diseases in order to take the necessary measures for an optimal post-operative result.
Then Doctor Bela will discuss your visual needs with you. It’s about determining together how much you use your distance, intermediate and near vision.
Depending on your needs, different options will be offered to you in order to choose the right implant to place in your eye.
Standard aspherical implants correct hyperopia and myopia. Toric implants correct astigmatism. Finally, multifocal or premium implants make it possible to correct distance and near vision in order to limit the use of glasses post-operatively.
The operation is most often carried out on an outpatient basis and does not require hospitalization. You will therefore be asked to go to the clinic one hour before the operation and to have fasted for 12 hours . You will be welcomed in the clinic with which Doctor Bela collaborates in Geneva and you will be asked to submit the preoperative file, in particular the anesthesia questionnaire including the list of your medications and your allergies.
After cataract surgery
After cataract surgery, as soon as the operation is completed,a dressing will cover your eye for a maximum of 24 hours.
A snack will be served to you at the clinic. Most cataract surgeries are performed on an outpatient basis.
You will therefore be free to return home accompanied one hour after the operation.
At home, stay calm, do not put your head in water, do not wear makeup or carry a heavy load for a week.
You should start putting the prescribed treatment into the eye the day after the operation.
This consists of antibiotic and anti-inflammatory treatment three times a day.
In the evening when you go to bed, you will be given a protective shell for the night only.
During the day you do not need to protect your eye. Appointments will be scheduled regularly with your ophthalmologist to monitor the progress of your vision.
Vision will appear clearer immediately after the procedure but a slight haze may persist for a few days.
After a maximum of one week your vision will be clear and you will have the possibility, if necessary, of replacing a pair of glasses to correct your distance or near vision. If you feel pain, redness or loss of vision in the week following the operation, it is important to contact your surgeon urgently.
Voici quelques informations concernant cette chirurgie:
30 minutes ambulatory surgery
local drops with sedation
- Same day anesthesia consultation
- Be fasting on the day of the operation
- Exit with a bandage covering the eye
- Be accompanied when leaving
- Autonomy the same evening
- Do not play sports, put your head under water, or wear makeupfor a week
- Protect your eye with a protective cover at night for a week
- Day 1: Appointment with Dr. Bela to remove the dressing
- D7: prescription for temporary glasses
- M1: final glasses prescriptions
What are the signs of cataracts?
Around the age of 60, there is a progressive opacification of the crystalline lens. This is known as cataract. When you have a cataract, your vision may be impaired. The first signs of cataract before the loss of vision are as follows:
A loss of contrast requiring more light to read
Glare in front of light sources, making it difficult to drive at night
A change in colour vision
The next stage is a change in correction figures, making the eye artificially more myopic. Some patients say they no longer need glasses to read. But this improvement is only temporary, as cataracts are a progressive phenomenon. After a while, vision becomes blurred, with blurred vision at both distance and close range. No pair of glasses can then improve vision. Cataract surgery is necessary when glasses are no longer sufficient to compensate for this loss of vision. Cataract surgery is the only treatment available to resolve this loss of vision.
How is cataract detected?
Cataracts are visible to your ophthalmologist and also felt by the patient.
Sometimes the opacification of the crystalline lens is so slight that the ophthalmologist can see the beginnings of a cataract, but the patient does not yet feel any symptoms. This is when you need to be vigilant. Do not undergo cataract surgery if your vision is 10/10. All surgery carries a risk, particularly for your cornea and retina. However small this risk may be, it is only justified if the benefit is sufficient to outweigh the risk. You will then be offered annual or bi-annual screening appointments to reassess the situation.
For your part, if you notice that your vision is declining more rapidly in the meantime, you should contact your doctor to bring forward your screening appointment. In all cases, you are advised to see your ophthalmologist once a year to check your vision, renew your glasses and detect any emerging eye diseases that may be the cause of progressive and irreversible vision loss, such as glaucoma or AMD (age-related macular degeneration). Your ophthalmologist will detect cataracts at these annual check-ups.
How is cataract treated?
At present, the only possible treatment for cataracts is surgery. There are no drops or drugs that can replace this operation.
Surgery is indicated when the reduction in vision caused by cataracts can no longer be compensated for by changing glasses.
Cataract surgery is performed by your surgeon under a microscope. Patients often ask whether this surgery is performed using a laser. One stage of the operation can be carried out using a laser, but the surgeon is indispensable during all the other stages of the operation. Furthermore, studies have shown that laser surgery does not improve vision or reduce the incidence of complications.
During this operation, the opacified crystalline lens is replaced by an implant placed in your eye. This artificial lens will enable you to regain perfect vision, provided there is no disease affecting the cornea or retina that would impair vision.