Cataract surgery and astigmatism: do the two mix? Actually, astigmatic patients may be surprised at just how much they can benefit from modern cataract surgery! Cataracts and astigmatism are unrelated conditions, but they can both be corrected during one procedure. Combining cataract surgery with toric premium IOLs can give astigmatic patients the best vision of their lives.
What are Cataracts?
Cataracts occur when the natural lens in the eye – located behind the iris – becomes foggy. Cataracts are common and typically occur as a result of age, UV exposure or steroid medications. Cataracts can only be treated with surgery, and when left untreated, can cause blindness.
What Is Astigmatism?
Astigmatism is a refractive error caused by an irregularly shaped cornea. Normally, the eye has a rounded shape, much like a baseball. Astigmatic patients, however, have a football-shaped eye. This causes difficulty focusing light onto the retina, resulting in blurry, distorted vision.
Astigmatism can be corrected using glasses and contact lenses, and for those who are candidates, refractive surgery (such as LASIK). Not many people know that astigmatism can be corrected during cataract surgery.
Cataract Surgery and Astigmatism
Cataract surgery is pretty straightforward. Your surgeon will make an incision in the cornea. Through this incision, your surgeon can access the capsule (the membrane that holds the natural lens). Your surgeon must remove the front portion of the capsule to access the cataract. Once accessed, the cataract will be broken up into pieces and removed using a tiny suction device. Once removed, your surgeon will replace the cataract with an IOL.
The IOL (intraocular lens) you choose is really what makes the difference between “meh” vision and amazing vision. Premium IOLs can correct common refractive errors like nearsightedness, farsightedness, presbyopia, and even astigmatism.
Cataract surgery will not be any different for astigmatic patients than it is for others. The only difference is the type of IOL used.
Toric IOLs
During cataract surgery, your natural cataract-affected lens will be removed completely. The lens plays a big part in focusing light onto the retina. So, in order to help the eye function properly after cataract removal, an intraocular lens must be placed. IOLs made specifically for astigmatic patients are called toric IOLs.
Toric IOLs are different from other IOLs in that they cater specifically to patients with astigmatism. Because everyone’s eyes are different (especially when you have astigmatism), no two toric IOLs are the same. When you have astigmatism, different parts of your eye require different prescriptions to be able to focus light properly and evenly. Toric IOLs have different prescriptions in different sections of the IOL.
When implanted into the eye, toric IOLs must be placed very precisely so that the refractive power matches up with your eye. Once placed, your vision should improve immensely!
Interested in learning more about toric IOLs and cataract surgery? Contact Stahl Eyecare Experts at our Garden City or Manhattan locations. Schedule your cataract consultation today by calling or scheduling an appointment online!
