Basically, the amount of light that enters the eye progressively gets reduced due to increasing opaqueness of the lens. Our brain and eye adapt to that to a certain extent. Due to this adaptation many people after cataract surgery notice increased brightness around them and in some cases it may be uncomfortable.
After cataract surgery, expect your vision to begin improving within a few days. Your vision may be blurry at first as your eye heals and adjusts. Colors may seem brighter after your surgery because you are looking through a new, clear lens.
You may notice glare and halos around bright lights at night. This is normal and may potentially become less noticeable after a few months.
Brighter colors
After having cataract surgery, many patients notice that colors are brighter. That's because they are viewing the world through clear lenses rather than their own brownish, yellowish lenses.
Dry eyes can contribute significantly to blurred vision and glare at night. We recommend artificial tears such as Systane or Refresh tears 3-4 times per day or as directed by your ophthalmologist.
Light sensitivity: Many patients also report increased light sensitivity or a sense of extreme brightness after their clouded lens is replaced with a new, clear lens. Patients can find relief by wearing especially dark sunglasses and avoiding direct sunlight until their eyes fully adjust.
A posterior subcapsular cataract often interferes with your reading vision, reduces your vision in bright light, and causes glare or halos around lights at night. These types of cataracts tend to progress faster than other types do.
For the first few days after your surgery, it's normal to have blurred or double vision and watery/gritty eyes. Your eyes may also look red or bloodshot. These side effects will normally subside within a few days, but it can take four-six weeks for your eye to fully heal.
Inflammation in the eye can happen after cataract surgery, but it is typically harmless. Any inflammation within the eye following cataract surgery is the body's natural response to having the eye's lens removed. This reaction causes blurry vision, but your eye doctor can prescribe medication to help.
What should I do with my old glasses? Are they safe to wear? You will not harm your eyes by wearing your old glasses. However, you may prefer not wearing them since, in most cases, your vision will have improved after surgery, in particular your distance vision.
Depending on the lens and the patient, neuroadaptation may happen sooner, later or not at all. The majority of patients will adapt to multifocal IOLs within six to 12 months, according to Dr. Maloney. But about 10 percent of patients never will adapt.
Patients with a dislocated IOL may experience a decrease or change in vision, diplopia, and/or glare. Additionally, they may report ocular pain or headaches from intermittent angle-closure and/or inflammation. Some patients also report seeing the edge of the IOL.
Some known risks of cataract surgery include infection, eye floaters, scar tissue formation, inflammation, lens dislocation, glare, halos, droopy eyelid, high eye pressure, retinal tear, or retinal detachment.
What Happens if You Bend Over After Cataract Surgery? You should not bend over after cataract surgery for at least 2 weeks. Bending over will place pressure on the eye and this may cause unnecessary complications to your eye. The main complication will be a delay in the healing process.
Do not rub or put pressure on your eye for at least 1 week. Do not wear eye makeup for 1 to 2 weeks. You may also want to avoid face cream or lotion.
Answer Section. No, your vision generally doesn't deteriorate after cataract surgery unless other problems arise, such as macular degeneration or glaucoma.
However, as we usually do the operation on one eye at a time, this means that your eyes will be out of balance with each other until after the operation on your second eye. This vision imbalance is called anisometropia.
Typically, within eight weeks, both eyes should have fully healed and your vision should be stable.
Normal Adaption –
This happens due to increasing cataract. Replacing the crystalline lens with an artificial intra ocular lens increases blue light transmission. Patients often comment that everything looks 'blue' after cataract surgery. This is normal and brain adapts to this in some time.
How influential is your eye colour? People with dark brown eyes have the greatest risk of developing cataracts. An Australian study found that the risk can be up to 2.5 times greater for certain types of cataracts. Researchers suspect the reason is similar to wearing a black shirt in the middle of summer.
Another early symptom of cataracts is glare, or sensitivity to light. You may have trouble seeing in bright sunlight. Indoor lights that once didn't bother you now may seem too bright or have halos. Driving at night may become a problem because of the glare caused by street lights and oncoming headlights.
Photophobia is common after cataract and refractive surgeries, especially among patients with light-colored (blue or green) irides. It usually starts during the early weeks after the procedure.
Monofocal lenses (standard lenses covered by insurance) placed after cataract surgery allow patients to have cataract free vision, but some patients, especially those with astigmatism, will require glasses to see well in the distance and will definitely require glasses for reading.
If there is progression to pain, decrease in vision, or any discharge from the eye, patients are advised to seek medical attention. A long-term consequence of cataract surgery is posterior capsular opacification (PCO). PCO is the most common complication of cataract surgery.