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Routine
Cataract surgery removes the cloudy lens and replaces it with a clear artificial lens called an intraocular lens (IOL).
We perform a minimally invasive, small-incision, no-stitch cataract surgery called phacoemulsification ("phaco") surgery. First, the eye is numbed with anesthesia. Then a tiny incision is made in the eye to make room for a small ultrasonic probe. This probe breaks up, or emulsifies, the cloudy lens into tiny pieces. The pieces are then suctioned out through the probe.
After the cloudy lens has been removed, a new artificial lens, or IOL, is implanted in the eye. With the recent advance of foldable IOLs, artificial lenses can be implanted through the same small incision from the phaco procedure.
Cataract sugery involves the use of micro-incisions to remove the clouded lens and replace it with a man-made artificial lens. Mathematical, computer driven formulas are used to select the power for the new lens. The traditional artificial lens does not allow the eye to focus at varied distances. The traditional artificial lens is single focus, or monofocal, which means that it can provide clear vision for distance or near, but not both.
Typically we target the traditional artificial lens for distance correction. Ideally the artificial lens provides clear vision for distance without eyeglasses. In this scenario, you would be less spectacle dependent and need glasses only for near work after cataract surgery.
Additionally, astigmatism, a very common irregular curvature of the eye, may require the use of eyeglasses for distance and near following surgery.
