Dr Mark Porter advises a reader who’s hesitating about having their cataracts operated on. What’s the true risk – and is there something else they could do instead?
Are there any newer alternatives to conventional cataract surgery?
I am due to have mine operated on but the leaflet that the specialist gave me contained a long list of possible complications, which has put me off.
I was anxious about the idea of someone operating on my eye before, but now I am really frightened.
The first thing you should do is contact the eye surgeon and let them know how you feel so they can perhaps arrange another appointment to run through the possible complications – and hopefully reassure you.
Cataract surgery is one of the most successful procedures performed in medicine and I would not think twice about having my eyes operated on if I had cataracts that were interfering with my vision and affecting the quality of my day-to-day life.
I am afraid there is no surgical alternative to removing the cloudy lens and replacing it with a synthetic one. And, frankly, it would be hard to improve on what we are doing now. These days it’s all done under local anaesthetic, often takes less than half an hour, and the results are excellent – with nearly everyone (95%+) ending up with much better vision.
As with all surgical procedures, things don’t always go to plan and it is important that doctors make patients aware of this when offering to operate. As in your case, the list of possible complications – however unlikely – can be off-putting. We GPs often see a similar reaction to yours in people prescribed a new pill once they have got home and read all the potential side effects in the patient information leaflet.
Put it this way, the risk of serious complications – like infection or damage to the eye – after cataract surgery is tiny at less than 1%. One less serious but more common one is clouding of the capsule that the new lens sits in, a condition called posterior capsule opacification, which can affect around a quarter of people within five years of their operation. However, this is generally easily fixed using a quick non-invasive laser treatment.
And don’t forget all the benefits of cataract surgery, which extend far beyond sharper vision. People who have the surgery report feeling more confident and happier, they find it easier to pursue their interests and hobbies – anything from knitting and reading to tying fishing flies – and are more independent and mobile (not least because it makes driving easier and safer).
So please don’t be put off.
Have you got a medical question for Dr Mark Porter? He can’t reply individually, but will respond to questions on this page*
Email drmark@saga.co.uk.
*Always talk to your own GP
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