I had cataract surgery a week ago. The cataract wasn't fully developed, but the "spokes" in it were causing me to see double images in my right eye. It's less severe in my left eye.

It's been a week now and I'm taking prednisone eye drops for the swelling until things get back to normal. I saw the doc yesterday and my vision is much improved, but not quite 20/20. Hoping for that, and the doc says it may be a month or more before all the swelling is gone and we know what the final result will be. I have an appointment on August 1 to assess the results and to look at the other eye and schedule that one for surgery.

I've worn glasses since I was in fifth grade, and I've always hated them. I won't mind needing reading glasses, but for distance I'll feel like it's a miracle not to need glasses.

Anyway, the vision in my right eye (the one with surgery) does not have quite the acuity that my left eye has with a corrective lens for myopia. (The doubling in my right eye was side-by-side, but the doubling in my left eye is stacked.)

So my question is, what has been the experience of others? How quickly did your vision settle in. Are you happy with the results? And based on your experience do you have any advice for where I am now and what I should do about my left eye? (Some people are telling me I should have the left eye corrected for reading so I won't need glasses at all. They call that "monovision," and some people get contact lenses that do that.)

Thanks.
Steve.

My dad just had both eyes done and he is very please
He now can see clearly with out glasses and just needs readers for up close

I had both eyes done recently and had very good results with no pain/discomfort during or after the surgery. The surgery took less 10 minutes per eye and I literally never felt a thing except for when they put the IV in my arm. I requested no IV pain medication for the second surgery because it made me dizzy and a little nauseous. I'm surprised you are only using the Prednislone eye drops. I used VIGAMOX and ILEVRO (very expensive) in addition to the Predislone. I used 2 of the drops for 3 weeks after the surgery. When I had my right eye done they put a plastic cover on my right eye but the Doctor told me I could take it off when I got home and only needed to wear it when I slept for the first night. I went home ate lunch and took a nap. When I got up I took the shield off and could see like an eagle with my right eye both up close and long distance. I could see good enough out of my right eye that I didn't need to wear glasses at all even to read. I went to the Doc the next day and he said I could see good enough out of my right eye to pass the Driver's License eye exam. He told me I would most likely need reading glasses after I had both eye done and the healing was complete. I had the left eye done 3 weeks later and I had blurry vision for a few days because my eye got a scratch on it somehow. I waited 8 weeks for my final eye exam to make sure everything had healed to get a new eyeglass prescription (I never needed reading glasses from the time I had the first eye done). My final exam revealed that I had 20/20 vision and don't need glasses at all. I couldn't be happier about the results and I hope you have the same. My Doctor told me that my results are very unusual and not the norm. You can pay extra for lenses that will give you up close vision in one eye and distance vision in the other eye but there's no guarantee that they will work. Good luck!

My mother in law had both eyes done this year and the right eye was sharper in a few weeks,the left had a longer time.

She just saw the eye doc and she will need glasses for long range and reading glasses.
She can see long range a lot better than before she had them worked on.

Be sure and do the drops like the doc says and it should clear up.

Hope it does good for you.

I had both eyes done a few weeks apart several years ago. I elected to be able to see far off and buy readers at the $ store. Worked great for me. I wore glasses all of the time from age 10 until I was 60 years old to be able to see distance. Now using binoculars and hunting in the rain is easy and I am very grateful. Dr. said there is a lens that can be used by some, that gives both but my eyes did not qualify. If my arms were a little longer I would not need readers. miles

I had both eyes done, one in '02 other in '03. At present I'm almost 20/20 distance and only a very slight correction needed for reading.

I had my left eye only done in 2004. Right eye was not ready. Doc cautioned against full correction in one eye only. As a result, when I had the right eye done in 2010, it could only be corrected to the extent the left had been. So I did not get the full benefit of the implanted lenses and still have to wear glasses for distance, as I have since grade school. Disappointing, but still better than having the cataracts, which wreaked havoc with my night vision on the highway. Getting both eyes done at the same time is the way to go. Prayers and best wishes for you.

I had both eyes done 20 years ago, and for the most part I went from 20/200 to 20/20 for the most part, at my last check up, I was seeing 20/30 not bad! I have a dry eye problem so that is part of the issue, other than that, I healed up fairly quickly- I had both lens in my eyes replaced- the it was a strange form of cataracts they were in the center of the lens, I was 35 when it was first noticed and we did correcting with glasses for a good while, I fly airplanes and helicopters for a living, had to go for surgery when I was 40! The eye is pretty easy to fix and it heals quickly, you should be fine in a few days to a couple of weeks!

I had both done in '06. I still need a very minor distance correction but since I've worn glasses for 60 years anyway, it doesn't bother me in the least.
This guy has a surgical team that's very fast and efficient. When they did the 2d one, they had me prepped and were ready to start. The Dr was talking to me and what I heard was "We're ready to start we're all done." That's what I heard. In the middle of that sentence, they did it.

I've had one eye done and waiting until the next one is ready...about a year or so.

No issues. I could see better but I still have to wear glasses. Before I turned 40 I could see great. 27 years later I must always wear glasses.

My only gripe about being old and needing glasses is that it put a hurt on my handgun shooting.

I talked with someone who had the same pleasant experience that you have!

I'm 73. I had both of mine done earlier this year, about two months apart (due to a heavy surgical schedule at the outpatient clinic). The right eye was 20/30 four weeks after surgery and is now 20/20. I don't know just when the improvement occurred. The left eye is now 20/30, six weeks after surgery and that is probably as good as it will get.

Nonetheless, I am pleased with the results. For the first time in over 40 years, I don't need glasses to attend to my everyday activities, but I do need readers for closeup work. I had been wanting to have the surgery for almost ten years, but the cataracts weren't bad enough for the insurance to cover the surgery until my checkup on my birthday earlier this year.

I've got a friend that had one eye done 4 weeks ago and the other 1 week later. He had cataracts removed and lens put in at the same time on each eye. He said he sees great at a distance, but needs $store glasses to read.

When my cataracts get bad enough for the insurance to pay, I plan on having he same procedure.

I have noticed that after the surgery my eyes are very slow to adjust to changes in lighting.
Entering the house after being out in bright sun I'm damn near blind for a couple of minutes, and driving after dark, while I can see well enough, the vision gets better after a little while

My wife had hers done so that she has distance vision in one eye and reads with the other. It's worked fine for her. She had contacts that way for years anyway. The doc said that it often works fine for women but men not so much. He said that for some reason, men can't get used to that kind of vision.

My wife and I each had our eyes done about 5 years ago by different Drs. Neither of us consider the surgery a success. My right (dominate) eye vision is somewhat blurry, left eye is pretty good. The most annoying change in vision for me is shadowing or double images. Basically when looking at a light pole I see gray versions on each side of the pole, or when seeing a car with a roof rack, there appears to be another, gray roof rack. I had LASIK about 16-17 years ago and it was great. Since having cataract surgery I have to wear glasses when driving or hunting.

I have had cataract surgery in my right eye only. Everything went well and it took just about a week IIRC for my vision to improve significantly. That was just over 2 years ago and I am still waiting for the left cataract to "ripen".

I will not go the monovision route as I had done that many years ago with contact lenses and didn't like it.

donsm70

PS. Both of my brothers have had both eyes done with no problems.

One eye done, great results. Follow the docs orders with whatever drops they give you and more than likely your results will be great too.

Other eye hopefully later this year. Eye test at work this year showed really diminished depth perception (on their machine at least) but the doc didn't fail me for work as she sees I have adapter in real life at least.

Growing old has it's drawbacks, so many "fixes" needed for me (back, knee, wrist, eyes, not to mention what has already been done), but the fixes seem to have gotten so much better than in my folks' day.

Good Luck with yours,

Geno

My wife had her surgery yesterday.

She had very bad astigmatism in one eye, which had to be corrected before the lens would even fit.

We opted for multi-focus lenses.

So far, she reports that she can see colors that had not been visible to her for years.

The other eye gets done in two weeks.

I had my first eye done in mid-Dec. 2015. The operating room was closed down over Christmas and New Years so it was a month before the second eye was done. One eye is now 20/20 the other slightly better than 20/20. I wore glasses from in my 20's. Just turned 80 and am looking forward to hunting without glasses this Fall.

The only draw back for me is that now I always seem to be going from one end of the house to the other looking for my reading glasses. Minor complaint!

With all the fixes done in the last two years I am getting closer to being a "new man".

Jim

Wow, talking about different Dr.'s doing things different. I was put to sleep while the set everything up, but then they woke me up and gave me a button to push if I needed to cough or sneeze or anything. I was awake the whole procedure but could only see blurry movement and brightness. No pain. From the time I entered the building until I was on my way home was 45 minutes. miles

From Coke bottle glasses to 20/20 and 20/15.

By way of procedures, I have had rougher haircuts.

I wish you all the best of luck with the surgery and results. My mother was happy with hers, but a close friend of mine is going through hell with the tail chasing situation that can occur when you combine nearsightedness with cataract surgery and retinal problems.

I forgot to mention that some of the lens implants have protective UV filters so your eye won't be harmed by bright sunlight (I have this type). You only have to wear sunglasses if you want to for comfort and I usually do. There's no tint at all in these lenses. I have a card for each lens that shows the size, type and magnification. I have the same lens in both eyes but can't find my cards right now so I can't tell you the brand that I have but it's one of the major lens manufacturers. A very rare problem with cataract surgery is that another cataract can develop soon after the surgery but it can be removed in the doctors office without surgery using lasers. I'm looking forward to try shooting open sights again.

My Dad drive's a Cataract El Dorado....


Ooops I mean a Cadillac. Sorry, could not pass that one.

My father and his two brothers have had them done. The two brothers have had them multiple times. The first lens replacements were from cadavers. Now days they're some sort of plastic. "Buck" had his first surgery in Houston. Around 1964-65 I think.

My father will be 80 in Oct and now suffers from macular degeneration. The brothers are 78 and 74 and do not show signs of macular degeneration.

Wishing you well in your recovery, and the success of the surgeries.

Jeff

Everyday Hunter,

Two years ago I had my right eye done. At that time he told me I had a small cataract in the other eye but it was not bad enough to correct at that time. For a few days after the surgery I saw star burst on anything that produced a bright light. It took a about six weeks before the doctor would allow me to get an eye exam for glasses. My vision went from 20/200 to 20/20, but with glasses I could get 20/15 vision in my previous cataract eye.

A month ago I went in for the other eye since it had deteriorated. Someone has to be the one to whom the doctor says, "This is the best recovery I have ever seen!" He said it to me. I went in the very next day for a followup. I told him I was pain free and could see good! I mean really good! He went ahead right then and gave me an eye exam. My vision in the second eye is 20/15 without glasses. Since I wore glasses since I was a kid I wanted the edge they give. He wanted me to come back in a month for a checkup before I could get the glasses.

I compare optics a lot. Without glasses my right eye is like a good set of binoculars, but my left eye is like stepping up to Swarovskis. After the month wait, with glasses, both eyes are 20/15. Even the 20/15 left eye, with glasses, is noticeably better than without. Of course both eyes need bifocals to read.

My doctor says all implants now have UV filters. He says no one really knows if they're effective, but that they can't hurt. He says there's no proven benefit so it's more of a marketing angle than anything. Anyway, it's not just "bright" sunlight that has UV rays.

He also says once you have artificial implants, a cataract can't grow. Something else might, I suppose, that mimics a cataract, but it's not a true cataract.

Steve.

My cataracts were small, and not at the stage where surgery would have been necessary except for the fact that the spokes were causing double vision -- worse in my right eye (the one that has been done). The left eye will be done in August.

I suppose everyone is different in recovery. I had my surgery Friday (a week ago) and went in for my follow-up three days later on Monday. But on Saturday my experience was like yours -- no pain and very good vision. The discomfort that developed (very minor) really started up on Monday before my appointment.

I'm having three small problems, I think. First, there's some soreness/redness at the incision/entry point. It feels like there's a bump there -- like a foreign object is in my eye. The doc says that will go away, just keep the prednisolone drops going.

Second, I have a pretty big floater that tends to settle in my line of vision. With my glasses that wasn't much of a problem because with both eyes corrected for vision the other eye takes over and the floater wasn't as noticeable. Now, only the eye with the floater is corrected, so when the floater settles into my line of sight everything looks blurry. That should be no problem after my second eye is done. This is a problem I didn't expect, but it should be minimized eventually.

Third, I can wear my glasses with the right lens popped out. Then my left eye is correct by a lens and my right eye is corrected by the implant. The lens-corrected eye sees clearer than the implant-corrected eye, so at first I was thinking my implant didn't turn out as good as I hoped. But this morning I realized that the doctor said the implant would not correct my astigmatism, so maybe what I'm experiencing is my left eye with astigmatism corrected and my right eye without astigmatism corrected.

Anyway, the cataract surgery is a success, and once the other eye is done it will be a bigger success. Maybe for the acuity I want, I'll still need glasses to correct for astigmatism. I dunno, but sooner or later I'll get the answer to that.

Steve.

Everyday,

"He also says once you have artificial implants, a cataract can't grow. Something else might, I suppose, that mimics a cataract, but it's not a true cataract."

According to the list of risks from cataract surgery that my Doctor gave is that about 10% of the time the membrane (on your original lens) behind the artificial lens (IOL) becomes cloudy. The medical terms for this clouded membrane are secondary cataract or after-cataract and a simple lazer treatment in the doctors office can repair it.

So be it, but what you're describing is not a conventional cataract of the lens, and is not inconsistent with what I said. Thanks. Good to know the specifics of it.

Steve.

I didn't mean to come across being argumentative but I did a lot of study on cataract surgery before I had it done. You are correct in that you can't get regular cataracts again after successful cataract surgery. There were a lot of other things that could go wrong after cataract surgery that are much worse than after-cataracts. I was extremely lucky with my final results and I hope you are too.

I had cataract surgery in both eyes a few years ago. The results were truly remarkable. I need readers for up close, and had trouble with iron sights unless they were aperture sights. Pistol sights were particularly difficult because there was only a small strip of "up close" correction in my progressive bifocals.

I solved the problems with iron sights by using full-size lens (for protection) readers with slight magnification of +1.25 (my near correction Rx is +2.50). They make pistol and rifle iron sights crystal clear without distorting the target enough to matter as long as the target is something like a bullseye, clay target, or various plinking targets.

The doctor that did mine was a shooter, so he could give me good answers to some of my questions. I asked about recoil from highpower rifles. He said it should be no problem unless I let a scope hit me in the eye, which he said he had treated people for.

Just as an experiment a few years ago I had some glasses made with a focal length equal to the distance to the front sight of a pistol while in the firing position.
(I hope the above makes sense)
The target was a bit blurred but being able to see the front sight clearly seemed to improve my shooting.

No, you didn't come across as argumentive. I learned something from you, and appreciate what you said. Thanks.

Steve.

I had both eyes done some years ago and had the kind of lens that changes to allow reading as well as long range.

These lenses are extra $ but no glasses needed. The one thing you must remember, though, is that having a lens in your eye reduces the amount of light that is transmitted through the lens. I find myself needing a flashlight to see detail sometimes but the clarity is perfect outside in sunlight.

Considering my ability see with the cataracts, the result is no less than a miracle.

Well, I had my second one done Friday, and I've learned a lot about cataracts and the risks of the operation.

The secondary cataract spoken about by victoro is generally prevented by polishing the inside of the capsular bag that holds the intraocular lens, before the lens is installed. The bag is about the thickness of a single red blood cell. Maybe you know where I'm going with this.

The bag can tear, and in my case that's what happened with the second eye. That's not usually a big deal, because if there's enough of the bag left to anchor the IOL the surgery can be successful.

On Saturday morning when I took my eye patch off, I knew immediately the surgery failed. In the follow-up appointment the IOL was no where to be found. I was referred to a retinologist Pittsburgh.

His "fellow" was able to locate the lens inside the orb of my eye. Tomorrow, I'm scheduled to have them fish it out. They will probably suture a new lens in place.

Since Friday I have been blind in my left eye. The objective is to "deliver" the dislocated IOL, install a new lens, and restore my vision. They make no promises about how much vision -- the better my vision the more successful the surgery is.

The capsular bag tears infrequently, about 1%-2% of the surgeries. In the case of my surgeon, it's less than 1%. I don't know now often the IOL dislocates so much that it ends up inside the eyeball, but it's not often.

For those of you who pray, I ask that you would raise my need to the Lord. He knows already, but he tells us to pray and says he answers. We don't know why or how, but we don't need to know that. He just answers.

Of course, there are worse things that can happen. I have one good eye, two good legs, and pretty much nothing else wrong. And if I finish my life with one eye, I can learn more of his purpose for me and still live to his glory. That's what he wants from us, in good health or bad.

With the surgery scheduled for tomorrow, I probably won't be able to check this for a few days, so to those who pray I say "Thanks." Even if you don't pray, I know many will care, and I appreciate that, too.

Steve.

2+ hour surgery yesterday. They found the lost lens and fished it out; stitched in a new lens. No general anesthesia; awake the whole time under a MAC. They said I did well. Will know if they did well at follow-up later today at 1:00; then going home. They sad a month for my eye to recover; tissues very "angry," they say. Still need prayer. Can't sleep because they taped the patch on in an uncomfortable way.

Steve.

I had both eyes done 1 1/2 years ago. They also corrected astigmatism in both eyes. It took about month for both eyes to heal up and now have 20/13 vision. I also felt like there was something in my eyes for about 4 months after surgery. They used a laser procedure for cutting cornea and for destroying cataract. The laser procedure is not covered by insurance so there was a hefty chunk of change out of pocket. Best money i ever spent!

Godspeed, Steve. Sounds like a lot of reason for hope.

Actually now I'm thinking my problem is not the patch. It's the stitches. Duh!

Steve.

How long before you can shoot the big boomers after surgery? I can see out of my left eye ,first time in years it was not a blur.
I just had my left eye done and need to get to shooting my Lott.

Don't know. A month at least, maybe two. I'll ask when I see the surgeon in a week.

Steve.

Best of luck to all here with the cataract problems. I going to be facing some decisions regarding same pretty soon. I'll bookmark this thread for reference, also.

L.W.

Right now I'm wondering if I had any luck. I had surgery Thursday to retrieve the dislocated lens, and it was successful. They also sewed in a new lens. At my follow-up on Friday they said the surgery went as well as it could have, and that I'd get my vision back. They took the patch off around 1:00 Friday afternoon, but I'm not seeing any better now than I did then. In fact, I'm afraid it's not as good. Maybe I'm expecting too much, but I can see virtually nothing with that eye, other than shapes and colors. I can't recognize my wife if she's more than 6 feet away.

I was watching football on TV today and all I could see with my left eye was a green field with some faint movement. On close up shots I couldn't distinguish players on one team from players on the other.

My next follow-up is this Friday, but I'm paying my local ophthalmologist a courtesy call tomorrow because he wants to look in there and see what they did.

Still hoping for the best, but it's hard to be optimistic. Maybe I'll have to change my 24HCF handle to Dead Eye.

Steve.

Best 15 minutes you will spend, distance vision was bad, after it ,it is like looking at the world through binos! Good luck enjoy!!!!!!

I think you've misread some things here, or you haven't read the whole thread. I'm finished with the surgery, and its more like looking at the world through a cloudy glass of water.

>> I had cataract surgery on my right eye in June. It turned out very well.
>> I had cataract surgery on my left eye on Sept. 9. It didn't go well. The capsular bag broke, and the implant lens got lost inside my eyeball.
>> I had surgery last Thursday, 9/15, when they fished the lens out using a series of incisions in my eyeball.
>> Then they sutured a lens on the front of my eye. The entire surgery took a little over 2 hours.
>> At the follow-up appointment on Friday they took the patch off and everything is very blurry. They said it will get better. I know it has been only four days since the surgery, but so far there is no improvement.
>> Still pain, redness, and lots of swelling.

What I've learned -- the risks of cataract surgery are far greater than I thought. If it goes well it's like a miracle. If it doesn't, well, it's no fun at all.

Steve.