Cataracts

What is a Cataract?

A cataract is a clouding of the natural lens inside the eye. This lens works much like the lens of a camera - focusing light images on the retina, which sends images to the brain. When this lens becomes cloudy it prevents light and images from reaching the retina. This results in blurred images, dulled colors, and glare – making it difficult to read, drive and perform many daily functions. Vision with cataracts has been described as seeing life though a cloudy film; but a cataract is not a film over the eye, and neither diet nor medications will make it go away. When a patient’s lifestyle is affected, the best way to treat a cataract is with surgery that removes the old, clouded lens and replaces it with a new, clear artificial lens implant to restore vision.

How Common are Cataracts?

Cataracts are a normal part of the aging process and are the leading cause of vision loss in adults 55 and over. Cataract surgery is one of the safest and most effective surgical procedures. In fact, more than 3 million cataract surgeries are successfully completed in this country every year; making it the most commonly performed surgery in the U.S.