39^th European Ophthalmology Congress

Cataract

A cataract is a clouding of the natural lens of the eye. This clouding of the eye prevents light rays from entering the lens and focusing on the retina. The retina is a light-sensitive tissue lining of the eye and is located at the back of the eye. This cloudiness occurs when some of the proteins from the eye's lens start to alter their shape and obstruct the vision.

There are three basic techniques for cataract surgery:

1. Phacoemulsification: This is the most common form of cataract removal as explained above. In this most modern method, cataract surgery can usually be performed in less than 30 minutes and usually requires only minimal sedation and numbing drops, no stitches to close the wound, and no eye patch after surgery.

2. Extracapsular cataract surgery: This procedure is used mainly for very advanced cataracts where the lens is too dense to dissolve into fragments (phacoemulsify) or in facilities that do not have phacoemulsification technology. This technique requires a larger incision so that the cataract can be removed in one piece without being fragmented inside the eye. An artificial lens is placed in the same capsular bag as with the phacoemulsification technique. This surgical technique requires a various number of sutures to close the larger wound, and visual recovery is often slower. Extracapsular cataract extraction usually requires an injection of numbing medication around the eye and an eye patch after surgery.

3. Intracapsular cataract surgery: This surgical technique requires an even larger wound than extracapsular surgery, and the surgeon removes the entire lens and the surrounding capsule together. This technique requires the intraocular lens to be placed in a different location, in front of the iris. This method is rarely used today but can be still be useful in cases of significant trauma.