A cataract refers to when the lens - the front of your eye - clouds over, making your vision blurry. They are usually caused by aging, and can only be treated by a surgical procedure to replace the lens with a clear, artificial one.
Blurred or cloudy vision, fading colours, finding lights too bright or glaring, can all be symptoms of developing cataracts. Many people with cataracts realise they may have a problem when they are struggling to read, see their screen, recognise faces, or drive at night. Vision can temporarily be corrected with glasses, or contact lenses, but eventually will deteriorate and need surgery.
Retinal detachments and other eye injuries or surgeries can lead to higher risk of cataract. Other contributing factors can include age, diabetes and smoking.
Jason's story
Cataract surgery was a really good experience, and much quicker than anticipated. My vision is significantly improved and I don’t need to use a contact lens anymore.
Jason, from Hitchin, found he needed cataract surgery after his eyesight had deteriorated to where he was struggling to read, even with reading glasses and a corrective contact lens. As a project manager on a construction site, this made work more challenging, especially when he was on-site.
Jason had received cataract surgery in his other eye three years ago at Moorfields, where he was also first treated for an emergency in 2018. Jason had a retinal detachment, which had to be treated rapidly to prevent permanent sight loss.
“Cataract surgery was a really good experience, and much quicker than anticipated. I could arrange surgery to work around my leave – I had a beach holiday and was worried about the potential of infection, which the team recognised.
“They were really very professional, very courteous, very knowledgeable, no queries left unanswered.
“Once I was anaesthetised, I was in with the surgeon, and we were talking about holidays and before I knew it he was like, “we’re done!” and I was sorted. The post operative care was very good and professional too. They were a first-class team."
“My vision is significantly improved and I don’t need to use a contact lens anymore. My eye doesn’t get dry anymore either. My quality of life is so much better, and I’ve been signed off with a clean bill of health.”
Surgical excellence at Moorfields
We are the oldest eye hospital in the world, performing thousands of cataract operations a year, consistently exceeding targets for surgical outcomes, and are staffed by some of the most renowned ophthalmic surgeons in the world, who work across our network of over 20 locations and 10 different surgical sites.
Surgical techniques developed at Moorfields have been adopted worldwide. We can offer cataract surgery for patients with more complicated needs, surgery for paediatric patients, and can offer immediate sequential bilateral cataract surgery – operating on cataracts on both eyes, one after other, if appropriate. We offer monofocal lenses as standard, but can also offer toric lenses to correct astigmatism.
Published September 2024