WHAT IS A CATARACT?

Cataracts affect almost everyone, sooner or later.

The natural crystalline lens of the eye is made mostly of water and protein. Sometime in a person’s 60s, 70s or 80s, some of the protein will clump together, causing the eye’s natural lens to become discolored and clouded. This clouding of the natural lens is called a cataract.

When this occurs, light rays passing through the eye become scattered and unfocused. The result is that all objects, whether near or far, become blurry. If left untreated, cataracts can lead to blindness, although this is very uncommon in the United States. To help you better understand cataracts, click here to watch an animation on the development of a cataract.

CATARACTS

The only treatment for a cataract is removal of the affected natural lens of the eye and implantation of a lens implant, or intraocular lens (IOL). This restores the eye’s ability to have light pass unobstructed through to the retina. Over 14 million IOL procedures are performed worldwide each year.

Click here to learn more about the procedure.