Crease after Cataract Surgery

Question: My daughter has recently had cataract surgery but still has blurred vision. She has been told by the cataract surgeon that this has been caused by a 'creasing' when the lens was implanted. Is this normal and what is the remedy and prognosis ?


Answer: Typically, when a Cataract is removed it requires that the Cataract Surgeon remove the cloudy material of the crystalline lens while leaving in place the thin lens "capsule" as a support in order to effectively place the Lens Implant in a stable position. From time to time the lens "capsule" can get a small "crease" in it which will almost certainly blur the vision. As the eye heals, say over 3 months after the Cataract Surgery, the "capsule" becomes fibrotic and can change configuration. Sometimes this eliminates the crease by itself. More often, the Cataract Surgeon will perform a YAG Laser Capsulotomy which is a painless laser procedure using eye drops to numb the eye, in order to create an opening in the creased capsule along the visual axis. This procedure takes a few minutes and almost always provides a huge improvement in vision within a few minutes!

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