There is no non-surgical treatment for cataracts. Decide to have surgery when you cannot see to enjoy or perform daily tasks, such as your job, hobbies, driving, athletics or outdoor activities. Cataract surgery is usually fast, comfortable, and quite successful. It can generally be performed on an outpatient surgery basis.
Anesthesia consists of minimal sedation and a local block for comfort.
The procedure itself usually takes less than fifteen or twenty minutes and in most cases, one usually can return home in a few two hours. Normal activity almost can be resumed almost immediately. Cataracts are never removed with lasers. The cloudy lens is removed with an instrument that loosens the protein and gently vacuums it out of the eye. This instrument is called a phacoemulsifier and is not a laser.