T-Minus One Month Until Cataract Surgery...

[CyberJCM]

Yup, in about a month I'll be having cataract surgery done on my first eye, the right one. I've been somewhat hopeful and even a little excited up until now at getting this done, in that it will solve part of my vision problems. But once it was actually scheduled, I started to get a bit nervous.

A little background. I'm 33, and developed "visually significant" cataracts in both eyes. They've been progressing over what I guess to be getting close to 10 years. This has only added more vision trouble to an already legally blind guy. I am very nearsighted, in the 20/200-20/300 range uncorrected. I also have a degenerative condition of the retina called retinitis pigmentosa, or RP. This condition degenerates the visual field of a person by the retina having pigment cells which obstruct it, more or less. It can eventually lead to near total blindness. It has always prevented my vision from being totally correctable. I cannot drive, am near totally blind in the dark, and need visual aids to read print. I actually use my computer in High Contrast mode, which is white text on black so I can actually see it. No fix or treatment for this condition, but I make the most of it. These darn cataracts have been making it to where Im near blind in bright light as well, and its time they go.

The reason I post all this, is as I said I'm nervous for the surgery. They have said that they will correct a rather significant portion of my vision with the artificial lenses (if anyone knows eyeglass prescriptions, they will take me from a -6.75 to about a -2.50). I'm excited at this prospect, but I dont expect it to be so dramatic that my vision becomes near normal. I'm nervous because I'm afraid it will actually make things worse for me. I tried contacts once, and for some reason never explained to me I lost all acuity up close. Up close is the best I have, I cant be without that.

Has anyone had cataract surgery, or someone they know well, and can share their experiences before, during and after? Or does anyone have similar vision issues as me, it'd be nice to connect. I'd appreciate it!

 

[smalltank]

My grandfather had that type of surgery..helped alot..I wish you luck..stay positive!

 

[plpenn]

My father in law has a buddy that had cataract surgery on both eyes in his early to mid 40's (within the last 10 years) This guy spent a ton of time out on the lake and the Dr. said that the reflection off of the water gave him the eyes of a 80 year old! Any way Don recovered just fine and now does not even wear reading glasses.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Franziskaner]

Both my mother and my maternal grandmother had cataract surgery. I remember well my mother's description of my grandmother after the bandages came off--said it was really something to see an 80 year old woman all lit up and excited like a little girl! She was just absolutely thrilled with the results. Hope you feel the same way.

 

[malocchio]

my grandmother had surgey on both eyes in the 1950's...several days in the hospital,cataracts removed by scalpel,and coke bottle goggles from then on...I had mine done a year ago....in and out in 90 minutes,most of that is prep time,painless ,you feel nothing,nothing at all...no..they do not slice them off with lazers,they "dissolve" them,literally vacuum them off,polish the eye,and insert the tiny lifetime lens....piece of cake,honestly,don't sweat it,guaranteed pain free....

 

[Kentos]

I talked with my ophthalmologist re my mothers cataracts, and he doesn't advocate the procedure until the eye is nearly blind. His feeling is that worse case scenario my mother wouldn't be any worse off.

If you have ANY reservations at all, I would ask more questions, even get a second opinion if needed. You should be going into your surgery fully confident in being happy with whatever results you may get good or bad. My honest 2 cents .

 

[brucea]

My dad just had this surgery. In and out in one day and he is very happy with the results. So happy he goes in again this summer for the other eye. Good luck with your results although you will not need it!!

 

[DoubleB123]

My uncle had this surgery and it fixed his vision really well. He said for the first time he realized that his sink and toilet were actually light yellow rather than plain white.

 

[CyberJCM]

Thanks everyone for the encouragement! I'm not worried at all about the procedure, these kinda things really dont bother me. Just nervous of the results. Its good to know many have had more than positive experiences with it!

 

[Mako72]

Easy as pie!

I got diagnosed with cataracts at 21, they never could decide why as I hadn't been born with them. You won't realize how much of your vision you are really missing until they fix them. Like some of the others I also went from wearing glasses from age 10 till 21 and have not had to afterwords. Good luck!!



Jay

PS- I am 40 this year so I can only guess they have gotten even easier!

 

[Jim]

John,
The fact that you are posting this tells me that you are still not 100% sure about the decision. Discussing this with you doctor/surgeon and or a second or third opinion would perhaps shed more light on the possible outcome and ally the uncertainty that you seem to feel at the moment. With your present condition I am not sure anyone else's experience would be relevant to your particular situation. Whatever you decide, godspeed to you and the best wish for a great outcome. Keep us informed.

 

[Cannata]

I had cataract surgery in my late fifties. I am 61 years old. I had very acute myopia. The cataract surgery corrected almost all of the myopia. I have astigmatisom, but not bad. I stll wear glasses, but the lenses are much thinner and I can get around the house without my glasses. I was classified 4F for the service because of my vision. I could not read the top line (the largest) of the chart with out my glasses. The surgery was a godsend for me. Of course, I did not have other eye problems and only you and your doctors can decide whether cataract surgery is right for you. Get all the information you can from opthamologists you trust. I wish you all the best.

Steve

 

[Pkrankow]

My Dad just went through this, but without the correction implants. His vision is pretty good without glasses, but still is supposed to use them for driving.

A fella I worked with, older man, went through the procedure with the corrective implants. His vision improved a truly remarkable amount, he said he could read stuff, like highway signs, much farther away than he ever could in the past.

Both complain about fluorescent lights, particularly the "blue" toned ones. The "yellow" ones that look more like incandescent lights are much better tolerated. This is because the part of the eye that filters out UV light was removed with the cataract.


Phil

 

[malocchio]

My Dad just went through this, but without the correction implants. His vision is pretty good without glasses, but still is supposed to use them for driving.

A fella I worked with, older man, went through the procedure with the corrective implants. His vision improved a truly remarkable amount, he said he could read stuff, like highway signs, much farther away than he ever could in the past.

Both complain about fluorescent lights, particularly the "blue" toned ones. The "yellow" ones that look more like incandescent lights are much better tolerated. This is because the part of the eye that filters out UV light was removed with the cataract.


Phil

Thia is really spot on...CFL lights are the worst ! They have reduced the flickering a small amount,but not enough to keep the human pupil from expanding and contracting at a rapid and alarming rate.I use CFLs outdoors,but stocked up on tungstens for indoors, that will last until the price of LED bulbs drops,although they may have problems as well,we shall see.The LED bulbs do not contain mercury ,as the CFL bulbs do,and a billion more of these are in the landfills than old mercury thermometers ever were......Young guys don't suffer from the effects of the CFL flickering at first,but long term exposure will wreak havoc on their eyes when they get older,especially in overlit supermarkets...

 

[dpmtherrien]

Both of my parents had the cataract surgery when they were in their 70's. Neither one experienced any problems and both said the procedure was a very easy thing to go through.

 

[Tekka]

I don't know anyone who has had it done, but I have seen this surgery performed and have some experience dissecting eyes in labs. lol Your surgery should go really smoothly. It is a fairly routine operation. They just need to go in there and breakup and suck out the old lens and then insert new ones. Which reminds me... You should really do your homework on the kind of lenses you can get for your eyes and talk about it in depth with your physician. Your new lenses won't work like natural ones, so its important to choose one type or two different types for your eyes.

 

[rwbrown04]

My father just had this done in one and only one eye (insurance reasons). He's incredibly happy with it.

My wife (30) just had ICL surgery which is slightly different but age wise is closer to your ballpark. The eye center did mostly cataract surgeries. She only had a minor issue with pressure the day after the second surgery. She got an awful headache. The doc said bring her in, relieved pressure and all was well. All in all money well spent.

 

[RSC]

I had Tetraflex lenses inserted into both eyes a few years ago as part of FDA clinical trials. I'm not sure whether these have been approved yet, but if not, I think that they should be coming soon. They've been available in Europe for some time now. These provide some accommodation, focusing using the eye muscles as with the original non-presbyopic lens. I use +1.0 reading glasses when reading for longer periods, but they work pretty well. The operation is nothing at all, really.

 

[_JP_]

Dad had the surgery several years ago. He is able to go without glasses now accept for reading. And he is constantly misplacing his few pairs of reading glasses!