Cataract is typical in old age. From the age of 65, a clouding of the eye lens can be seen in almost everyone. Cataract surgery is the most common operation in Germany and worldwide – in Germany alone it is performed around 500,000 times per year. Complications tend to be rare with cataract surgery.
What is cataract surgery?
The clouding of the lens of the eye is called a cataract or cataract. To understand the significance of this condition, it is important to understand the purpose of the lens: it lies behind the cornea and divides the eye into an anterior and posterior chamber. When light passes through the iris onto the lens, it is refracted here and directed onto the retina. The lens is normally soft and transparent and its diameter can be changed by small muscles – depending on whether we want to look near or far. The lens is nourished by what is called aqueous humor, but the nutrient supply deteriorates with age, so that after the age of 65, a slight clouding of the lens can be seen in almost everyone. Recognize eye diseases: These images will help!
Cataracts: causes
So, age and decreasing supply power of the lens are the most common causes of cataracts. However, if someone has a metabolic disorder such as diabetes, increased exposure to infrared (glass blowers!) or ultraviolet radiation (sunbathing without sunglasses!), or has had an eye injury, there is a high likelihood that a cataract will develop early.
How does the name come about?
The name “cataract” comes from the fact that the severely clouded lens takes on a gray color and the affected person gets a fixed gaze because of the deterioration of vision. The term “cataract”, on the other hand, means “waterfall” in Greek or Latin – in the past, it was assumed that the gray lens coloration was clotted fluid. In addition to cataract, there is also glaucoma: this is an increase in intraocular pressure. This disease is also called glaucoma. Both diseases usually have nothing to do with each other.
Cataract: symptoms and signs
When the lens is only slightly cloudy, vision decreases almost imperceptibly. However, as the lens becomes more cloudy, vision loss becomes more severe. Cataract symptoms may manifest as follows:
- Colors and contrasts become blurred
- Everything fades and you have the feeling of seeing through a veil of fog
- The eye becomes sensitive to glare, because the cloudy lens scatters the incident light unevenly
Often both eyes are affected. So if you are no longer quite young, see increasingly poorly at dusk or when driving, or feel blinded, you should consider the possibility that you develop a cataract.
Cataracts: diagnosis and diagnosis
An ophthalmologist can use a slit lamp to accurately illuminate the lens of the eye. This examining device allows the lens to be magnified, the individual layers of the lens can be distinguished, and it is possible to see in which area of the lens the opacity is located.
Cataracts: surgery for treatment
Unfortunately, neither drops nor pills help against lens opacity. To restore vision, the clouded, “blind” lens must be surgically removed. This operation has already been handed down in ancient Egyptian records as a “cataract”. The lens was poked into the posterior chamber, the vitreous body, with a pointed object – often resulting in infection and blindness. Even with a successful outcome, vision was restored only to a limited extent – because the refractive medium, the lens, was not replaced. In the 18th century, a new technique developed in which the clouded lens was removed from its capsule. In the process, it was initially not possible to replace the lens, and the change between near and far vision was compensated with strong glasses.
Help from an artificial lens
Since circa 1960, surgery has replaced the natural lens with an artificial one. The artificial lens is custom-made because it should have the same refractive power as the old lens. The modern lenses are usually made of Plexiglas or silicone – and it is even possible to insert a multifocal lens, which has several focal points: This can even make reading glasses superfluous!At what point you have the surgery depends entirely on the individual, how much you are limited in your everyday life by your fading eyesight.
Cataract surgery: complications rare
The complication rate of cataract surgery is very low, and many routine doctors offer to perform the surgery on an outpatient basis. The operation is usually performed under local anesthesia, it rarely lasts more than fifteen minutes. Today, extracapsular lens removal is usually performed, which means that the lens capsule remains in the eye. The capsule is opened with a small incision and the old lens is liquefied and aspirated using ultrasound, this procedure is called phacoemulsification. The new artificial lens is inserted into the capsule. This leaves the natural boundary between the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye.
Cataract surgery and the consequences
After surgery, there are several rules of conduct to follow:
- Do not press or rub the operated eye. Only after several months your eye will be able to bear weight again.
- Watching TV is allowed immediately, prolonged reading only after several days.
- No eye contact with water and soap for the first three weeks. Wash your hair with your head tilted back.
- When you leave the house, protect the eye against the sun and wind with protective bandage and sunglasses!
- Wear a protective bandage at night for the first few weeks, so you do not unconsciously rub the eye.
- In the first few weeks, do not lift or carry heavy objects. Bending is only allowed with the upper body and head upright.
- Do not exercise again until your doctor gives his OK.
How to prevent?
Since lens opacity is a natural sign of aging, the only thing you can do is try to avoid additional risk factors such as strong sunlight. So it’s worth investing in a good pair of sunglasses with UV protection!
