Cataract operation

Cataract is the opacification of the lens and the cataract operation It is the only way to correct this condition. The phacoemulsification It is the technique most used to perform the intervention.

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada we are experts in this intervention, so we perform the Cataract surgery with the bimanual technique with MICS and bilateral microincision, both eyes at the same time for a better and faster recovery.

Cataract operation

Cataract is the opacification of the lens and the cataract operation It is the only way to correct this condition. The phacoemulsification It is the technique most used to perform the intervention.

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada we are experts in this intervention, so we perform the Cataract surgery with the bimanual technique with MICS and bilateral microincision, both eyes at the same time for a better and faster recovery.

Why Área Oftalmológica Avanzada?

Before choosing a specialist to perform the cataract operation, it is important to ensure that we do so in a trusted professional center, which meets all the basic requirements to ensure that the intervention is safe and successful.

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada We are specialists in the operation of cataracts and in the application of the most modern techniques to perform this surgery. Therefore, in our center we offer:

MICS Bimanual Microincisional

The technique MICS bimanual microincisional it allows us to perform smaller incisions that induce less changes in the geometry of the cornea and allow reduce unexpected graduations due to the healing of corneal wounds that occur during surgery. This makes us get better results and greater safety than with the traditional technique of cataract surgery.

Bilateral cataract surgery

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada we operate cataracts both eyes in the same surgical act especially important in patients with associated pathologies such as diabetes or coagulation disorders, which require special preparation for the patient.

Thanks to bilateral cataract surgery we get reduce the surgical risk of the two interventions by operating the two eyes separately, we improve and accelerate the patient's visual adaptation and we reduce recovery time and leave work by half.

Progressive Trifocal Lenses

Possibility of implementing a Progressive trifocal lens with custom fit that allows you to do without glasses after surgery thanks to the most advanced technology and the experience that gives us more than 25 years of experience as an ophthalmological center.

Exclusive advantages of Área oftalmológica Avanzada

wheelchair access

Wheelchair and ambulance access

hospital

hospital ophthalmology

night income

Comprehensive service and hospitalization

medical excellence

More than 30 years of experience

What are cataracts?

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada we are experts in cataract surgery, but before addressing your treatment it is important to understand what this condition is and why it occurs.

The waterfall occurs when the crystalline, which is the natural lens of the eye, loses its transparency and does not allow the passage of light to the retina, hindering the ability to focus on objects and causing vision to be lost progressively.

This condition is common in the elderly, presenting himself as a aging processHowever, it can also manifest itself in newborn children or even in middle-aged patients.

How to know if I have cataracts?

Although the lens opacity is the most obvious sign that we suffer from cataracts, when patients are forming they begin to show signs that may indicate that it is time to visit an ophthalmologist. At this stage appears blurred vision and sometimes double vision.

Some cataracts cause a paradoxical situation, it looks better on cloudy days that on sunny days, or the patient stop needing your glasses closely. In most cases, it is difficult to drive at night and is usually necessary change the graduation of your glasses more frequently.

As you go forward, vision decreases and it can reach blindness if it is not treated at the right time, it can even affect the contralateral eye if cataract rupture occurs with the release of its intrasacular content.

How is the operation?

La Surgery is the necessary treatment to cure this process. Although nobody wants to enter the operating room, it is true that the advances we have at the moment, especially due to the technology we handle, allow us to perform very safe surgery and solve all those complications that arise around the intervention .

It is usually a sequential surgery, first one eye and then the other, regardless of the degree of evolution of the cataract in each of them. This is so for avoid visual imbalance. Let us remember that the signal generated by each eye reaches the brain and it is the brain that has to “join” the two signals, obtaining a unitary and binocular vision, therefore it is preferable to perform cataract surgery on both eyes. It can be done in both eyes at the same time or sequentially, first one within a few days the other.

Sedation

Cataract surgery is performed by sedation, similar to general anesthesia but without the risks they entail. The great advantage that the patient is asleep is that we avoid the anxiety or stress problems that a surgical act usually entails. It is a surgery that It does not last more than 15 minutes and we perform it in a microincisional way.

Surgical technique

The microincisional technique is performed through incisions that are smaller than 1 millimeter with what the trauma that is generated in the eye is minimal.

Intraocular lens

This microincision allows us empty the opacified lens and implant an intraocular lens into the capsular bag. This lens allows us to correct not only distance vision, but also intermediate vision and near vision.

These lenses are called multifocal or trifocal lenses, since they allow us to correct the visual problems of multiple focuses (near, middle and far).

At the end of the intervention

In this intervention, sutures are not usually required since the incisions are self-sealing.

Once the intervention is over, the patient, in most cases, does not need to cover their eyes since leaving the operating room, being able to go home with their eyes completely clear and with a certain degree of vision, not perfect since it is required a healing process that lasts a few days, but it is not necessary to occlude the eyes.

This is especially important in patients suffering from dementia or alzeimer where we can get a very safe surgery that does not affect the general condition of that person.

Duration

The operation of cataracts with an intraocular lens implant is an outpatient procedure (does not require hospital admission), which must be performed by an ophthalmologist and in a specialized center.

The procedure lasts about 15 minutes and, in general, it is performed with topical anesthesia and sedation so that the patient is relaxed. In most cases it is not necessary to cover the eye at the end of the procedure, so the patient can see with the eye operated when leaving the operating room.

How long does vision recovery take?

La visual recovery after cataract operation is very fast, being able to get one useful vision from the first hours of the intervention.

During the days following surgery, visual ability gradually improves until reaching Maximum potential, habitually 2-3 weeks after surgery.

Price and financing

El cataract operation price It varies depending on the type of intraocular lens we implant. Anyway, the The price of the cataract operation is 1.735 euros per eye, not including the intraocular lens..

En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada We have plans for cataract operation financing up to 12 months.

If you have medical insurance, the insurer generally takes over the entire intervention, although this could vary depending on the mutual and the coverage that each person has contracted. From our center we inform and accompany you throughout the process of contact with your mutual.

You can click here to find out if we work with your mutual. 

FAQ

What is phacoemulsification?

La Phacoemulsification with ultrasonic energy is most commonly used technique for cataract surgery. Ultrasound literally "pulverizes" the cataract and this allows surgery to be performed through very small incisions (2 mm), aspirating its contents and thus reducing surgical trauma.

In our case, we use micropulsed ultrasound with bimanual technique, a procedure that involves a upper step since it allows to make even smaller incisions, less than 1 mm, with less surgical trauma. The result of this technique is safer surgery and faster recovery.

The modern cataract surgery consists in emptying the "crystalline sac", taking advantage of its configuration to house the intraocular lens that will allow us to recover vision in the following days.

When to have cataract surgery?

Basically when decreased vision interferes with the patient's daily activities. The specialist may also consider surgery if he appreciates an increase in intraocular pressure or other complications related to the progression of the cataract, in these cases, although the patient has a certain degree of vision that allows him to perform his usual activities, it is advisable to consider the removal of the cataract to avoid irreversible damage.

Is cnot to wait until the patient has almost completely lost vision to propose surgery, as this practice may involve risks, a more complex intervention because it is a harder cataract or with poor visibility for the surgeon. In general we recommend going to the ophthalmologist in the initial stages of the cataracts, so that it is he who controls the evolution and advises us when to perform the surgery.

On some occasions, we recommend lens surgery to especially correct refractive errors, it is what is called surgery "phagorefractive”: Is indicated in patients with high presbyopia, myopia or farsightedness, the lens surgery with a multifocal intraocular lens implant not only improves vision, but at the same time allows you to dispense with glasses or contact lenses.

Intraocular lenses and custom adjustments?

We currently have intraocular lenses with flexible materials, which allow them to be introduced through the small incision made at the beginning of the surgery. There are various types of lenses, from the monofocal, such as the glass of the glasses to see from afar and multifocal lenses, to see from far and near.

In recent years, a new type of lens has appeared that attempts to emulate the physiological mechanism of the crystalline lens, these are progressive trifocal lenses, which offer better optical quality and the possibility of eliminating dependence on glasses, both for distance, intermediate vision, like up close

We have the qualitative leap in cataract surgery in the future that is already a reality for some centers like ours. It involves implanting intraocular lenses with the ability to be "molded" at 2 weeks after surgery. It consists of a material sensitive to ultraviolet light, which allows to correct the small graduation defects that may remain after surgery, eliminate optical aberrations to improve visual quality and incorporate the correction of astigmatisms or mulitfocal profiles, according to the needs of each person .

In this way, we can talk about a true personalized surgery for each patient, ensuring the maximum vision potential in a safe and very effective way. These results will be maintained throughout life, without the need for subsequent adjustments or the need to wear glasses.

Does this surgery have risks?

This intervention is a controlled and safe procedure, however, just like any other surgery is not without risks. Currently the Cataract surgery results are excellent and visual recovery is usually fast and satisfactory in the vast majority of cases.

However, it is important to know that in any medical act, success cannot be guaranteed in 100 percent of cases, we can only guarantee that we will take all preventive measures so that the probability of risks during the intervention be very low, and if a complication occurs, it can be resolved without major consequences.

How is the postoperative?

El cataract postoperative it's simple and even in the hours following the intervention, visual ability is maintained without experiencing pain. The same day of the operation should not be driven, so the patient must be accompanied by someone who takes him to the operating room and home.

Additionally it is recommended:

  • Wear dark glasses outdoors to avoid eye discomfort from light or wind.
  • Wash your hands carefully before applying any eye drops or ointment in the eye. If both are used, the eye drops should be placed first and, three minutes later, the ointment.
  • Do not perform physical contact or swimming activities until the doctor considers it appropriate. Normally we recommend between 2 and 3 weeks to return to the sport routine.
  • For any major inconvenience, pain o blurred vision, it is always due consult the ophthalmologist.

It is important follow the surgeon's instructions about what we can and what we cannot do as well as medication and postoperative controls. Generally we should use eye drops for 2 or 3 weeks and go to the first review within 24 hours.

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Cataract operation
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Cataract operation
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En Área Oftalmológica Avanzada We explain everything about the operation of cataracts: how is the intervention, benefits, risks and postoperative.
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Área Oftalmológica Avanzada
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