First of all, if you come in for a consultation Dr. William Boothe and his staff of expert doctors at Boothe Laser Centerwill examine you thoroughly to know whether you need a cataract surgery and what would be the best type of procedure to perform on your eyes. Dr. Boothe’s decision will be based on several factors and he will explain all the details to the patient prior to cataract surgery. Cataract is a condition of the eye in which clouding of the natural lens in the eyes affects the vision of patients. In most cases, it is due to the aging process as cataract is commonly found in older people. In some cases cataract is detected and treated in patients in their 50’s as well. Cataract may affect one of the eyes or both. The condition is not infectious, it cannot spread from one eye to the other.
A cataract patient receives the image of objects blurred because of his/her cloudy lens. Even though cataract is mostly related to the aging process, there are other cataracts found in people. Other kinds of cataracts are secondary cataract, traumatic cataract, congenital cataract and radiation cataract. Our natural lens of the eye is made of protein and water. To get a clear vision, the protein of the eye is arranged in such a way that makes the light pass through the lens and keeps it clear. With age, the protein part of the lens may join together to form a clouded area on the lens which we call cataract.
The cataract will become thicker as time passes, making it difficult for the patient to see objects. So you should understand that the risk of this condition increases as your age increases. Other risk factors are diabetes, smoking, alcohol consumption and prolonged sunlight exposure. Some of the symptoms of cataract are cloudy vision, faded colors, poor vision at night, glare, double vision and frequent changes required in contact lenses or eyeglasses. A word of caution: the above mentioned symptoms may also be caused by some other eye problems. Boothe Eyecare will decide whether his patients require an eye surgery or not by analyzing the symptoms of each patient.
Cataract can be treated by using eye glasses, magnifying lenses and anti-glare sunglasses. If all these measures are not helping the patient to improve vision, Dr. Boothe and his staff of expert doctors at Boothe Eyecare may suggest doing a cataract surgery which involves removal of the cloudy natural lens and replacement with multifocal intraocular lens using up-to-date technologies. Phacoemulsification or Phaco and Extracapsular surgery are the two kinds of cataract surgeries performed for removing the cloudy lens. Cataract surgery is a most common eye surgery and is considered one of the most effective and safe surgeries.
About 90% of the people who performed cataract surgery have enjoyed a better vision after the surgery. Dr. William Boothe will do some tests a week or two prior to surgery to know whether the patient is qualified for a cataract surgery. These tests consist of measurement of the corneal curvature and the shape and size of the eye. Based on the information from the tests done, Dr. Boothe will choose the right kind of multifocal IOL for the patient. The surgery will only take one hour or less and it is a painless surgery. Boothe Laser Center and their staff will help you with any kind of doubts / questions regarding the cataract surgery to be performed.