Question:
My 76 year old mother is scheduled to have a cataract surgery in a
week. Three weeks ago she went to see a surgeon for pre-surgery
evaluation. She had drops applied to her eyes for dilation. After she
came home she realized that she could see well and read with no
problem. After 3 weeks she is still OK.
I called the surgeon about the "miracle" and he did not have a clue
about what happened. He still insists that she needs surgery and is
sure it's a cataract and not something else.
Had anybody heard about such a case or can explain what happened.
Should she wait with the surgery or go ahead and do it?
Answer:
I'm just a layperson here, but I've had the surgery in both eyes. As I
understand, there is no reason to do this surgery unless the patient is
having problems seeing. The cataract causes no harm other than obscuring
vision. If your mother is OK with her vision, then there is no sense
facing the risks of surgery.
The key is knowing what her vision is. I suspect the doctor knows that
her vision might be much better than it is now, after the surgery. Still,
if your mother is OK with her vision, I'd advise waiting. If your mother
doesn't drive, and she uses a bright light to read, that might explain
it. A bright light will close down the pupil. A cataract causes vision
problems partly because there are some clear areas and some that aren't
clear, which causes an uneven refraction of the light passing through the
lens. Using a pinhole or closing down the pupil will help vision, as long
as the clear area is what she is looking through.
