Advice on cataract surgery

[Calzone]

Mark,

I luckily have almost $10K in a HSA (Health Savings Account) that works like an IRA, but is for health care expenses to avoid taxes by being tax deferred. I have this money set aside for when I need my eyes done.

The costs of upgraded lenses gets steep fast.

I’m so happy for you and that everything turned out great.

All the best.

Cal

 

[CLAdictic]

I had cataract surgery a couple of years ago. I was increasingly experiencing the problems associated with cataracts. I had the surgery for removal, and opted for the distant vision lens insert. My vision is 20-20 and night driving is a pleasure. It is nice to be able to hold a camera up to my eye and not have the glasses interfere or use diopters.

 

[raydm6]

I just had my left eye done a few weeks ago. The right was done four years ago. Same surgeon. He does good work. I opted for near-field vision and will get refracted in a few more weeks for Rx glasses lens adjustment. Really happy with the results.

 

[DownUnder]

When I retired in 2012 I devoted more time to my photography, also travel and volunteer work. At that time my vision was still reasonably good. For most of my adult life my left eye has done almost all my 'visual work', with the weaker right eye as backup. This has been so since I was four years old and had to wear specs for what was then (and may still be) known as "lazy eye".

Oddly (so I thought), I found the viewfinders in my Contax G1s and DSLR Nikons were fogging up. Two years later, I realised my right eye was the true villain. By 2015 the cataract had developed to the extent that I had lost 80% of the vision in that eye. Being me, I let it go. Mostly from fear of the op and, I have to admit, the neurotic terror of maybe losing my vision.

In 2020 during the Covid lockdown I accidentally walked into a low awning at a shop and hit my forehead above the right eye. A little blood from a graze, but seemingly no other damage.

A year later I woke up one morning and found my vision in that eye had returned - but everything was fuzzy.

My local optician did tests and found the lens in that eye had fallen out. She referred me urgently to the excellent Eye And Ear Hospital in Melbourne. More tests were done, and in November 2021 I had a quite complex operation on this eye, which involved putting in a new lens (a Hoya, yes!) but also 'gassing' the eyeball, with a convalescent period of two months and not being able to fly for that time. Inconvenient but needs must.

The operation took just under an hour and was done under partial anesthetic ("Here's the happy juice," the nurse joked as the stuff went into my vein). I felt absolutely nothing and in fact my most difficult moments were trying to not laugh at the dirty jokes the surgeons were telling each other. Post-op my right eye was covered (for two days) and I was sent home later that day, escorted by my partner. Throughout the procedure I was treated with the utmost care by the fine hospital staff. For which I was (and still am) most grateful.

The win-win part, so the surgeon told me was I got a Two For One Deal. When I had the accident the cataract fell out along with the lens, so a separate op to remove this was no longer required. Heh.

In May this year I had my left eye done, at a private clinic associated with the E&E. This took about 25 minutes and was also done under partial apathetic.

Post-op I had to administer eye drops (which I hate, but needs must and I did it) for three months in both eyes. Lucky me, there were no other complications.

The vision in my left eye is 90+% what it was 15 years ago. I no longer needs prescription lenses for distance viewing and my usual specs with +2.50 lenses now suffice for .

As for the right eye, well, not so good. Some macular degeneration means my center eye vision is wobbly. I can read big print on street signs and see well enough to use the eye to get around, slowly, my sight is only about 60%. Still better than it was before the cataract did its own removal and I ws given what the nurse called "a good gas job".

I now have to premium Hoya lenses in my peepers. This being Australia, our super good Medicare took car covered all the costs, as I am an 'OAP' - the Aussie term for old age pensioner - and my retirement income qualifies me for medical care under the Aussie system.

I cannot say enough in praise of the Eye And Eye Hospital in Melbourne. And I now no longer hesitate to recommend to anyone who has cataracts to not do as I did and delay it for years. Get out there and have them done!

All entirely one poster's personal experience. But it may be of interest and even useful to some.

 

[KoNickon]

"This took about 25 minutes and was also done under partial apathetic." I sure hope not! 🙂

 

[Doug]

He was so juiced up he just didn't care? 😀

 

[DownUnder]

"This took about 25 minutes and was also done under partial apathetic." I sure hope not! 🙂

Anaesthetic!! AKA happy juice. So yes, happily happy-happy-juiced!! I recommend it without hesitation, tho' I really would have preferred one of my home-mixed martinis, a triple gin with a big dash of vodka. But who can afford gin nowadays in Australia...

My MacBook speaks a language entirely its own.

Oddly, it changes words even while I'm doing a final save on what I write.

In the next few minutes I plan to KILL the darn thing...

 

[raydm6]

I praise the anesthesiologists and the use of memory blockers - especially for colonoscopies 🤣

 

[Retro-Grouch]

Anaesthetic!! AKA happy juice. I recommend it without hesitation, tho' I really would have preferred one of my home-mixed martinis, a triple gin with a big dash of vodka. But then who can afford gin nowadays in Australia...

My MacBook speaks a language all its own.

Oddly, it changes words even while I'm doing a final save on what I write.

In the next few minutes I plan to KILL the darn thing...

If DownUnder is found dead by mysterious causes, sitting at his computer, we'll know who struck first...

 

[DownUnder]

If DownUnder is found dead by mysterious causes, sitting at his computer, we'll know who struck first...

Agree. But I reckon my home brew (not shaken or stirred) martinis will do me in before my MacAir (Scottish?) does.

I praise the anesthesiologists and the use of memory blockers - especially for colonoscopies 🤣

Hm. It's a great relief to me at my age that Australia's Medicare no longer offers colonoscopies to those aged over 75.

All the above duly said, we should all agree that cataract operations are not something to be feared (as I did for too many years). In my experience, when I finally broke down - rather, when my left eye went wonky and I finally had to bite the bullet and do something about it - I found it quick and easy. The positive effects showed themselves almost immediately. Two days later I could read again. For me, this was surely the greatest win-win of all.

 

[Rayt]

I had cataracts on both eyes and after the surgery my night vision was gone. Driving at night is unsafe for me because in photography speak I get a lot of highlight clipping and all shadow details are lost.…meaning I am blinded by headlights. On road trips I need to check into a hotel and get off the road before dusk.

 

[DownUnder]

I had cataracts on both eyes and after the surgery my night vision was gone. Driving at night is unsafe for me because in photography speak I get a lot of highlight clipping and all shadow details are lost.…meaning I am blinded by headlights. On road trips I need to check into a hotel and get off the road before dusk.

So sorry to hear this, Rayt. My left eye (the good one) still fogs (or mists, I cannot decide which) a bit in bright sunlight, which means on most days in Australia and Indonesia where I hang out at about equal times. Like you, I cope best in overcast light or indoors. But then at my age, I consider myself lucky to have as good eyesight in my left eye as I still do. As for the right eye, well, such is life. I cope with it as best I can, and I still count my many blessings, even with the wobbles that (right) eye has from (age-related) macular degeneration.

On reflection I now realise I had eyesight problems even when younger. In 1990 I gave up driving after a series of (fortunately minor) car accidents cause by my inaccurately judging distances while at the wheel. I now prefer to be driven (or drive people slightly mad, as my partner will readily confirm) and the front passenger seat has been my favorite place in the car for the last 23 years.

I'm also chuffed to say that the viewfinders in my Nikons, Contax and Leica have suddenly become much less foggy since my left eye was fixed in May this year. Without my having to pay my camera repair center for any work... Small gains, big wins.

 

[Rayt]

Yes I have some fogging in one eye but thank goodness it isn’t the eye I use to focus. Priorities right? My only regret was to have the surgery early in life when I was in my 40’s. I had it done then because my employer paid for it but I should have waited until I absolutely had to have it.

 

[DownUnder]

Yes I have some fogging in one eye but thank goodness it isn’t the eye I use to focus. Priorities right? My only regret was to have the surgery early in life when I was in my 40’s. I had it done then because my employer paid for it but I should have waited until I absolutely had to have it.

Trust me when I say you did well to not wait. I realised I had cataract-related eye problems as early as 2009, but being my usual silly self I did nothing about it and endured a decade of inferior vision.

I waited too long to have my damn right eye, the worst of my two, done, and it has had its consequences. I am thankful to all the gods in the universe that my good (= better) left eye goes on doing the job for me, and long may it go on doing so.

I'm not a medical expert so I can't analyse how why your vision suffered long-term because you had it done too early. But if your employer paid for it, well. Gift horses.

Me, I like the thought that my improved vision is courtesy of Hoya Japan. Me and my Nikons now share the same premium filters/eye lenses. Five-year guarantee on the latter, at no cost to me thanks to Australian Medicare. My fondest hope is I will be around long enough to claim on the warranty if needs must, but on this point time will tell and we'll see. 😊

It may be of some consolation to you to know this, my surgeon told me that after one has eye cataract surgery, that eye will never develop another cataract. So I think, you did the right thing in going with it when you did.

We are deal certain cards in life and it's how the poker game gets played out.

Next time around, if, I'll hold out for a Hoya Polariser in my eyes...

 

[DownUnder]

A quick follow-up here. Three years (almost) down the track, my eyesight has dimmed a bit, but my optometrist tells me this is mostly due to my age (77 in December) and not directly caused by my two cataract ops.

Vision in my left eye is good but the eye gets tired. I also have some occasional problems with pressure, usually relieved by eye drops. The right eye remains at about 60% functionality but I've learned to cope with that, and on good days I actually convince myself that it has improved to the point that I can use it for almost all my usual things. I can't, of course. But it's a nice thought.

I get an annual follow-up at the fantastic Eye and Ear Hospital in Melbourne, where everything is done madly efficiently and the staff could not be kinder to their patients, given the great numbers they have to see every day. A trick I've learned (from a lot of experience!) is to book either the first or the second morning appointment from their opening time (which is 9.00 AM) so I can be in and out of there quite quickly and not have to wait a few hours as can and does happen with some of the later patients.

I am always ever thankful of modern medical technology and the wonderful Australian public health system, for all it has done for me.

(Later) Meant to add, but forgot. I no longer drive, by choice, so that wasn't a consideration in my pre-op discussions. Haven't since 1991. My partner sits behind the wheel and I happily look out the window to see how the world is.

My left eye sees all colors normally. My right eye with a slight blue-yellow cast. I did wonder about this at first, but on due reflection I realized my vision has always been like that. So nothing new.

Like others here I also have a choice collection of budget eyewear (prescription frames and lenses cost AUD $40-$50 in Indonesia, excepting in Bali where you pay more than in Australia, ha!). +1.50 for computer work and reading, +2.50 for detail work. My sunglasses have +0 (normal) lenses. I easily see everything thru my camera viewfinders without glasses, thanks to adjustable prisms.

 

[MarkWalberg]

It has been a few months over a year since I did the cataract surgeries, getting Eyhance toric lenses.
The return of sharp distance vision was spectacular. Also, my astigmatism was corrected.
The return of bright whiteness was unexpected and amazing. I thought Dallas just had a lot of smog, but it was my old yellow/brown lenses.
My new lenses are mainly optimized for distant vision. I can read a book without glasses, but it is tough.
Still need reading glasses, but that is fine. I've got a collection now. +1.25 for working at a computer, +3.5 for camera repair, in between for reading a book.
At night, there is a lot of flare in the periphery. As I drive by lights, they look like fireworks, but I have learned to ignore this.
At night, when not driving, a light in the periphery has a pretty good halo around it. Not seen at all in the day.

When I looked at the moon at night before the new lenses, I saw a15-20 images of the moon that overlapped. Now, with the new lenses, it is mostly back to just one moon. That is really wonderful. I can still see some of the overlapping images, but they are closer and not so bright now.
I guess that was due to my astigmatism.

Focusing my cameras, both rangefinder and SLR has improved markedly. I was worried that there would be more problems with this, but none have appeared.

I sure am glad I did this.

 

[sojournerphoto]

I had cataract surgery in my right, viewfinder, eye a few years ago - 2018/9 or thereabouts. It was about a year after having emergency surgery for a detached retina and the cataract is the normal complication of the retinal repair surgery (more specifically the loss of the ‘jelly’ and its replacement with aqueous solution in the eye). After a year I had laser surgery on the posterior capsule opacification.

My combined vision, with my left eye corrected by contact lens and right eye as is, is now about 6/4 - I’m very grateful to be in this position. It’s made photography much easier - without glasses I can see 35mm and even at a stretch 28mm framelines in a Leica M-A. This is all a new and positive surprise.

I have considered elective lens replacement for my left eye - 👁️ use either a -8.0 or -8.5 contact lens depending on what I’m doing and it would be good to be free of that. But can’t wear glasses to correct as the vision difference between the eyes is so great. However, both me and my consultant/surgeon baulk at the thought of operation in a healthy eye, so that waits until it’s needed.

Of interest, was the dramatic difference in colour rendering between my eyes post surgery. My old lens has yellowed a lot as I aged - imperceptible until you put a nice clear new one in the other eye!

Mike

 

[DownUnder]

This entire thread will have done wonders if it convinces even one person struggling with reduced vision from eye cataracts, to stop delaying and go and get that darn op done and over with.

There is nothing to it, absolutely. It's now standard day surgery. Recovery times are quick and usually good. Few post-op problems, most will sail through without any mishaps. Improvement is virtually immediate.

I was one of those scaredy-cats, until I worked up enough courage to finally pull the plug (or as my partner puts it, "pull out the finger!") in 2021 and 2022. Had both my peepers done and I'm now back to functionally VG+ vision. My right eye had other problems and the vision is somewhat impaired, but for at least a decade before I had it fixed it had been at first cloudy, then all but useless for almost ten years. Silly me. Stupid me. For not having had the op before. Now I've done it, and I want to encourage anyone here who has qualms about getting that operation, to start the process and get it done. Your life will improve a thousandfold or more for it. As mine has.

 

[Bill Clark]

A retired gent went to an appointment to see an eye doctor.

After the exam, the doctor informed him he had cataracts.

The patient replied, “the heck I do? I drive a Lincoln Continental!”

 

[boojum]

By now I am sure you have had the op. And you most likely know that it was a walk in the park. I have had both eyes done. I was myopic, at one time 20/400. After the cataract operations I pass the state eye test without glasses and do not need them. But the VA makes sure I wear a pair because the photosun blocks UV rays.

The left lens had clouded a bit and the ophthalmologist suggested he laser it clean and did I want to think about it, make an appointment or get it done then? My only question was if he had done it before. He laughed and assured me he had. It took about five minutes and helped a lot. And he gave me a tip on a real Korean restaurant. One where the Koreans go to eat. It had great food. You can't beat a combo like that. ;o)