Waiting to Have Cataract Surgery?

Question: Can I wait to have Cataract Surgery? My local eye doctor says that I need a Cataract Surgery but he did not tell me if I can wait. If I wait a year from the date I was diagnosed, is it too long?

Answer: The decision as to when to have a Cataract removed is really a personal decision driven by the discomfort and visual symptoms experienced by the patient-within certain limitations. Cataracts progress at different rates in different people. As the Cataract does progress not only will it decrease vision and often increase glare and light sensitivity, but it can cause the crystalline lens to swell and it may also become somewhat more difficult for your Cataract Surgeon to easily remove. These two considerations sometimes make it necessary to defer the timing of the surgery to the Cataract Surgeon. If the Cataract is not advanced and is not swelling and/or hardening, your Cataract Surgeon may pretty much allow you the choice of delaying the surgery for a year. If on the other hand you are at any risk or if the difficulty of the surgery might increase too much, he or she will recommend not delaying. Keep in mind that the most important thing is that you do not allow your vision to become reduced so as to cause you inconvenience or disruption of your being able to conduct your daily activities safely.

Important Note: The information presented on the About Cataract Surgery Blog or provided in response to a request for information in the Ask Cataract Surgeons section on aboutcataractsurgery.com is not intended to diagnose or treat eye problems, eye conditions or eye diseases including appropriateness of treatment, risks, complications or side effects as related to Cataracts, Cataract Surgery of Lens Implants. In particular a response to an inquiry made on the Ask Cataract Surgeons section of aboutcataractsurgery.com is not meant to take the place of the professional medical care provided by your eye doctor, ophthalmologist and Cataract Surgeon. Contacting us via e-mail or any other means is not a substitute for medical care.