Cataract Surgery Recovery Time

What is done in a cataract surgery is that your cataract - a cloudy spot developing on natural eye lens, is removed. It means that the whole lens which has become clouted and is giving vision problems is removed. After the faulty lens is removed, an artificial lens is fixed in its place. It is called a permanent Intraocular Lens (IOL) implant, in medical terms.

Your cataract woes will get over in around a couple of months. The recovery time will also depend on the age of the patient and overall health. Generally though, it will take around 3 months.

The first thing in the course of the recovery to be done is the placement of a protective shield over the operated eye. This is very crucial because then a patient will not hurt his or her eye or rub it or bump it.

In addition to that for almost 3 weeks to a whole month the eye doctor will either give or ask the patient to wear dark glasses to avoid over exposure to light. You will thankfully be allowed to go home in a day or so.

After you are back home, a patient can indulge in light activities - reading, watching TV (not for a long time though) and going about the normal activities. In this period, you will have to take care, not to rub your eyes. Use the eye drops and other medicines prescribed by the doctor without fail.

Resuming your daily activities more easily and with less effort will happen in this phase of cataract surgery recovery. You can drive your car a few weeks after surgery. But preferably the patient should be better off being driven.

Avoid driving till you get the green signal from the concerned doctor. In case you see halos and experience glares around light for a long time without the vision getting better in this juncture, speak to your eye doctor. Please take all the eye care measures during the recovery period.

This is perhaps the best time. There is no blurred vision that is experienced by the patient. In this stage your eye will ideally be back in good shape. This will be in around a couple of months. Even if your eye lens is in perfect condition at this stage, the patient will be asked to wear glasses for protection from UV rays.

You can indulge in sports too at this stage. But take care of those niggling problems. If you have headache or cannot see properly, you may have to get your eyes checked for prescription glasses.

Going slow and having patience will help you deal with this time better. There is a chance that you may develop a secondary cataract a few months after the original cataract surgery. But 99.9% times you would not have any complications and will have a fairly smooth recovery. However, consult the doctor immediately in case you feel something odd with your vision.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this story is solely for educating the reader. It is not intended to be a substitute for the advice of a medical expert.