In order to see clearly, the cornea and lens must be transparent. A cataract is a cloudy or hazy lens which blurs the picture on the retina. This occurs most commonly as a part of the aging process. A cataract may be removed surgically when it has become so hazy that it significantly interferes with sight: when it makes one’s daily activities difficult or impossible. The time selected for cataract surgery will vary from person to person depending upon age, medical status, occupation, visual needs, whether the cataract is in one eye or both eyes, and upon many other factors. Just because you have a cataract does not mean that you must have it removed. Cataracts generally progress very slowly over a period of years and can be removed at any stage of development.

A cataract does not have to be completely opaque (“ripe”) to be removed, but it must be removed before it swells and becomes “overripe.” “Overripe” cataracts can cause glaucoma and serious inflammation within the eye. A common misunderstanding is that cataracts can be removed by laser beam. Laser beams are used to treat several eye conditions, but they cannot be used to remove cataracts — although they can be used to remove the supporting membrane that sometimes becomes cloudy after one type of cataract operation. A cataract cannot be made to go away with medication. It must be removed surgically, and there are several methods in use. One method is not necessarily
better than another. What is important is not how your cataract is removed, but how well you can see again, without discomfort, after the eye is healed.Cataract surgery is one of the most successful surgical procedures in medicine. Following surgery, the lens of your eye must be replaced in one of three ways: glasses in front of the eye, a contact lens on the eye, or a permanent artificial lens (a lens implant) inserted inside the eye, usually at the time of surgery. Occasionally, a cataract may conceal the presence of retinal detachment, tumor, or other ocular disorder. Therefore, if you have a cataract, regardless of whether or not you are planning to have it removed, you should be examined at intervals
prescribed by your doctor to prevent permanent loss of sight from other causes.