Advances in Cataract Surgery

If you're over 50 and experiencing vision problems, the cause may be a cataract. Cataracts develop inside the eye, gradually clouding a lens behind the pupil. The most common cause is aging. Dr. Alan Carlson, chief of the Corneal and Refractive Surgery Service at the Duke University Eye Center, describes typical warning signs. "Many patients notice a decreasing ability to drive at night, also an increased problem with glare, bright sunlight, oncoming headlights. These are the things that people notice first when they develop a cataract." If an eye exam indicates a cataract and the problem can't be corrected with glasses, a specialist can surgically remove the cataract and replace it with a tiny intraocular lens implant that is adjusted to the patient's needs. Carlson says the procedure takes only a few minutes and patients usually return to work in a couple of days. "Patients are usually very pleasantly surprised, not only with the recovery of vision but with the actual surgical procedure itself, how painless it is, how rapidly their vision recovers and how quickly they are able to return to activities they couldn't do before the surgery." I'm Cabell Smith for MedMinute.