Cataracts
The word "cataract" frightens some people since they believe it means eventual blindness. Actually, a cataract is one of the least serious of the disorders that causes poor vision. Surgery can easily restore sight loss due to cataracts. Furthermore, cataract surgery has an extremely high success rate and the recovery is fast. With advanced surgical techniques and new multifocal lens implants, cataract surgery can provide clearer vision and less dependence on glasses than you have ever had during your entire life!
What Symptoms Characterize a Cataract?
A person will realize they have a cataract because of difficult in seeing. A cataract does not cause pain. Most types of cataracts scatter light within the eye, resulting in an unpleasant glare when the patient is in bright lights. Some people also see halos around lights, especially at night. One common type of cataract causes progressive nearsightedness and thus the glasses may need changing frequently.
Many other conditions beside cataracts may cause gradual loss of vision in an older person. One of the most significant of these is glaucoma, since vision loss from glaucoma is not reversible. Serious general medical diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure may also gradually damage eyesight, and sometimes macular degeneration is part of the problem. Because the patient with failing vision cannot tell whether they have cataract or much more serious disease, loss of vision requires a thorough medical eye examination.
Loss of sight from a cataract is usually slow. A change of glasses may restore useful vision. Later, when the cataract gets denser, new glasses are not helpful. Pills and drops cannot cure cataracts.