Medical Questions » Eyes Questions » Question No. 347
| Question: | What is the best time to have a cataract operation? When it is only slightly annoying, or should I wait until later? |
| Answer: | A cataract is the slow clouding of the lens in the eye, until it becomes like frosted glass, and impossible to see through.
There is no urgency about having a cataract operation until your sight has deteriorated to the point where glasses are unable to compensate for the clouding of the lens.
Usually one eye deteriorates faster than the other, and when reading, driving or other skills become difficult, the wotst eye will be operated upon. Only very rarely are both eyes done at once.
Once the bad eye has recovered, the other eye will be treated, and most patients find a dramatic improvement in their sight. One of the most common comments by patients after a cataract operation is that they find colours far brighter and more vibrant. The slow progression of the cataract over many years has had the same effect as slowly turning down the colour control on a television to give a very washed-out effect.
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