Cataract Surgery – Choosing a Surgeon

Cataract Surgery – Choosing a Surgeon

Choosing a cataract surgeon may be a daunting task as it depends on the severity of the condition and budget in hand. Cataract surgery has great success rates compared to other surgical procedures. An experienced and skilled surgeon can handle the cataract surgery with great ease. Removal of natural lens and implanting a standard IOL (single vision) can be done by an experienced cataract surgeon. However, great expertise and sharp skills are required to implant a premium (multi-vision) intraocular lens. Hence, choosing a cataract surgeon also depends on the type of artificial lens preferred by the patients. Most patients do not opt for premium IOLs as they are very expensive. Generally, most of the patients choose standard IOL for cataract surgery.

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Consultation and Testing

Many cataract surgeons are offering free consultation, so that the patients can understand whether the surgeon can do the procedure as expected. Generally, cataract surgeons will perform various tests to identify the best possible treatment. The tests that are used to identify various problems of the eyes are:

a)     Slit-lamp tests are used to magnify different parts of the eye to find the abnormalities.

b)    Retinal examination is done by dilating the pupils using drops for checking conditions like glaucoma.

c)     Visual acuity test is used to check the sharpness of the sight.

During the first visit itself, the patients can ask questions to clear all doubts regarding the surgical procedure such as type of surgical procedure, availability of the doctor, budget, billing, potential complications, IOL used, success of the procedure, follow-up treatment, board certification, technology used, etc. The consultation will help the patients to understand whether the surgeon is comfortable or not. The cataract surgeon should explain both advantages and disadvantages of the procedure.

Selecting a Cataract Surgeon for Standard Procedure

Narrow down from the choices made by checking the qualification, experience, skills, budget, and use of techniques with the help of family and friends. Patients can take the advice of a general ophthalmologist who helped to diagnose the condition. Never feel committed towards the surgeon during the first appointment itself. Analyze the benefits and disadvantages of the surgeon before making a choice. A fairly experienced cataract surgeon can perform a successful cataract surgery with standard IOL.

Selecting a Cataract Surgeon for Premium IOL

Premium IOL can fix presbyopic and the patients can reduce the use of reading glasses after the surgical procedure. Before choosing a surgeon for placing premium IOL, the patients should know whether the doctor has sufficient experience in using premium lenses. Premium IOLs that are used to perform cataract surgery are Tecnis Multifocal, Crystalens, ReZooom, and ReSTOR. ReSTOR, ReZoom, and Tecnis are multifocal intraocular lenses that require an expert surgeon to implant it by replacing the natural lens. Crystalens is used to get vision at various distances. Cataract surgeon who is skilled in fixing premium IOLs will be an expert in implanting standard IOLs also.

Check the credentials of the surgeon by going through the online membership and directories of American Society of Cataract and Refractive surgery. Check out the testimonials about the surgeon as it will give the patients an idea about reputation of the surgeon.