What is cataract?

A cataract or cataract is a dense, cloudy area that forms in the lens of the eye. A cataract begins when proteins clump in the eye that prevent the lens from sending clear images to the retina. The retina works by converting the light that comes through the lens into signals that are sent to the nerve. The optic nerve that carries it to the brain.

Cataracts develop slowly and eventually interfere with your vision. You may end up with cataracts in both eyes, but they usually don’t form at the same time. Cataracts are common in the elderly.

What are the causes of cataracts or cataracts?

The exact cause of cataracts is unknown, but there are factors that increase your risk of developing them with age, including:

Diabetes.

smoking.

Excessive alcohol use.

Eye injury and previous surgeries.

Prolonged use of steroid medication.

Exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays for long periods.

Hypertension.

obesity;

Genetic factors and family history.

Risk factors associated with cataracts include:

Elderly.

Excessive alcohol use.

smoking.

obesity;

hypertension.

Previous eye injuries.

A family history of cataracts.

Excessive exposure to the sun.

Diabetes.

Radiation exposure from X-rays and cancer treatments.

What are the symptoms of cataracts?

blurry vision

Double vision in the affected eye.

Myopia (in the elderly).

Changes in the way you see colors.

Night driving problems.

Sensitivity to light, because the patient sees light halos brighter than normal.

changes in vision

Change eyeglasses.

What are the types of cataracts?

There are different types of cataracts and cataracts, these types are categorized based on where and how they develop in your eyes.

nuclear cataract or nuclear sclerosis; It forms in the middle of the lens and causes the nucleus, or center, to become yellow or brown.

cortical cataracts; It is arc-shaped and forms around the edges of the nucleus.

posterior cataracts; It forms faster than the other two types and affects the back of the lens.

congenital cataracts; It is the type found in newborns or during a child’s first years, and is less common than age-related cataracts.

Secondary cataracts are caused by exposure to a disease or taking certain medications. Diseases associated with the development of cataracts include glaucoma and diabetes. The use of the steroid prednisone and other medications can sometimes lead to cataracts.

Traumatic cataracts occur after an eye injury, but it can take several years for this to happen.

Cataracts or cataracts can also form after a person is exposed to radiation treatment for cancer.

its complications

When neglecting to deal with it, the intraocular pressure rises and causes the destruction of the optic nerve, even if the treatment of cataracts is subsequently adopted.

treatment

It is only treated by surgery, whether by sound waves, or laser. As for the sound waves, a very precise opening is made by a pen-like device, and they enter the eye and break up the lens with sound waves and suction, and with the same device used, and from the same precise aperture, the new lens is implanted, and inserted folded to facilitate its dispersal after entering the eye.

As for the laser, the femtosecond laser technology is used, with the adoption of sound waves, by using this technology to make a precise hole in the surface of the eye instead of the device used, and then entering through that hole to break up the lens by ultrasound, suction it, and then implant Modern lens.