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Cataract surgery has changed a great deal over recent years. The procedure that we currently refer to as “traditional cataract surgery”, which is still routinely carried out, has already been superseded by “laser-assisted cataract surgery”.
But it certainly doesn’t stop there. As science and technology progress, we can expect the options for cataract surgery to also advance.
The following looks at the difference between the two procedures on offer today, as well as what’s in the pipeline for the near and medium-term future.
While there have been methods of treating cataracts back as far as the 5th century BC, modern cataract surgery as we know it began in the mid-1960s. The process of breaking down a diseased lens within the eye (a process known as phacoemulsification) with a laser and replacing it with an artificial one became reality, evolving into the highly sterile and quick procedures we have today.
Traditional cataract surgery involves the surgeon making a small incision in the eye with a scalpel. This provides an opening through which a probe is inserted into the lens capsule. Sound waves are emitted to break up the lens into tiny pieces. which are suctioned out. The surgeon then places the artificial lens and seals the incision without using stitches.
With laser cataract surgery, the geography of the eye is mapped by computer. The resulting program guides the laser to make the incision, break down the lens, and insert the new one in its place.
At the same time, and if required, the same laser can correct astigmatism.
The process provides a super-accurate lens placement. This allows some of the many advanced artificial lenses that are now available to be used—something that’s not possible with traditional cataract surgery.
These lenses are state-of-the-art, not only allowing for near, intermediate, and distant focus, but offering a variety of technologies that can correct astigmatism, use the muscles of the eye to naturally focus, and those that allow 100% of the light that enters the eye to provide a crystal clear, all-natural vision experience.
Future cataract surgery technology
The technology of tomorrow is already being planned and tested. As well as ever-advancing artificial lenses, surgical procedures are also progressing. Expect AI and virtual reality to play a big part—indeed, a 4K virtual reality surgery system that provides 3D images of the eye is already well into the testing phase.
Complex cataract operations, such as for those who’ve had LASIK or other eye surgery, will become easier, more mainstream, and more accurate.
However, the biggest leap may be one that doesn’t involve surgery at all. The wish for a medication route to cure cataracts has always been considered the holy grail.
Promising research in animals has shown lanosterol therapy to reduce the severity of cataracts. While this is within the very early testing stages, the ability to stop or even reverse cataracts with simple medication would be ground-breaking. Whether it truly becomes a reality remains to be seen. But watch this space…
The Modern Cataract Surgery Clinic is the specialist arm of the academic-grade West Boca Eye Center. Here, led by one of the world’s foremost pioneers of cataract treatment, Brent Bellotte MD., patients can benefit from the very latest advancements in treatment.
If you’re worried about cataracts, need to be monitored, or have been told you need surgery, there’s no better place to be.
Discover more about this globally renowned clinic at https://www.moderncataractsurgery.com
