Cataract Surgery

Cataract surgery is an operation to remove the lens of the eye when it is cloudy.

The function of the lens is to bend (refract) the light rays that enter the eye to help us see. Your own lens should be clear, but when you have a cataract it becomes cloudy. Having a cataract can be like looking through a foggy or dusty windshield. Things can look blurry, cloudy, or less colorful.

The only way to remove a cataract is through surgery. Your ophthalmologist will recommend having a cataract removed when it prevents you from doing things you want or need to do.

Cataract surgery does not restore vision lost due to eye conditions such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, or diabetic retinopathy.

During cataract surgery, your natural cloudy lens is removed and a clear artificial lens is placed. That lens is called an intraocular lens (IOL). Your ophthalmologist will talk to you about the IOLs and explain how they work.