Health encyclopaedia

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Risks of Cataract surgery

Cataract surgery is a common operation that is straightforward and successful in most cases. According to the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, fewer than 2% of people having cataract surgery experience serious, unforeseen complications. However, as with all types of surgery, there are possible side effects that’s it’s important to be aware of.

Most side effects are temporary and may include:

• the eye may be sticky or itchy and your vision may be blurry for a few days after the operation;
• the white part of the eye may appear red and feel ‘scratchy’;
• the eye may ache. This usually settles down within 10-14 days;
• the eyelid or eye may be bruised.

In rare cases there can be serious complications following cataract surgery. Sometimes the part of the eye behind the lens can tear during surgery, causing damage to vision. If this happens the cataract can also get lost in the back of the eye, which means another operation is needed to remove it.

The most common complication of the phacoemulsification procedure is clouding of the lens casing (capsule) that is left in the eye, which the implant is put in to. This is called ‘posterior capsular opacification’ and doesn’t become apparent straight away. The remaining capsule becomes gradually cloudy over two years or so, leading to reduced vision that is similar to having a cataract. This can usually be corrected by laser treatment.

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