Cataract Surgery and IOL Options

Cataracts are a common eye problem that many people develop as they grow older. You’ve probably had some relatives who have had cataracts, some friends who have had cataracts, or you may even be developing them yourself. If so, don’t worry. Treating cataracts is a common procedure and quite safe.

The team here at our Houston eye surgery center would like to look at cataracts and how they can be treated. We’ll define what cataracts are in case you’re not sure, mention their causes and symptoms, and then we’ll look at how they are treated through the use of lens implants.

What are cataracts?

Cataracts refer to the clouding of the clear lens of the eye. You may have seen this before; when a person has cataracts, there is a noticeable white spot, opaque spot, or milky where you should be able to see the color of the eye.

What causes cataracts and what are the symptoms?

Cataracts are caused by proteins within the lens of the eye clumping together. This is what causes the eye to become cloudy. Age is a major factor that contributes to cataracts, though smoking, eye injury, poor health, certain medications, and certain health conditions can also contribute to the formation of cataracts.

Many people who visit our Houston ophthalmology practice ask about the common symptoms of cataracts. These symptoms include:

• Clouding of the lens of the eye
• Blurry vision
• Poor color sensitivity
• Poor contrast sensitivity

How are cataracts treated?

Cataracts can easily be treated through the use of Houston cataract surgery. Basically this will involve the break-up of the cataract and the removal of the clouded lens. Once this has been done, it will be necessary to replace the lens of the eye with an artificial lens, also known as an intraocular lens (IOL).

What are intraocular lenses (IOLs)?

An intraocular lens is an artificial clear lens that is used to replace the natural lens of the eye. Generally these come in two varieties: monofocal or multifocal. Monofocal intraocular lenses can focus effectively for one distance (typically distance vision) while multifocal lenses can focus at various distances. If you receive monofocal lenses, it will be necessary to wear corrective lenses to compensate for the intraocular lens.

Here are Watkins Eye Center, we offer both monofocal and multifocal lenses for patients. While monofocal lenses can get the job done for some patients, we do prefer to use the Tecnis® Multifocal IOL when we can. Not only is it one of the best multifocal lenses available, bit it also allows patients more versatility of vision than a monofocal lens.

Other Eye Care Options to Consider

In addition to cataract surgery, we should point out that we also offer LASIK and laser vision correction, which is an excellent way to deal with refractive errors. With laser eye surgery, you reduce your reliance on corrective lenses. And with the technology progressing as time passes, the results of LASIK continue to improve for patients.

Schedule a Consultation at Our Eye Care Center

To learn more about cataracts, cataract surgery, and your many eye care options, be sure to contact our Houston laser vision correction and eye care center today.