Cataracts and I'm scared.

CeeCee said:
My dr said surgery in about 5-6 months. I never even thought that I have cataracts. My vision on the eye test hasn't changed from last year but I thought it would because I don't see signs far away that well, so just thought I'd need a new prescription for glasses, guess it's the cataracts.

This was my first visit with this dr and it took a long time so I hope he's good.
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I wear glasses also... CeeCee... I would consider getting a 2nd opinion.. If your cataracts are early and not causing you any problems yet that you have even noticed.. perhaps this doctor is a bit too eager to rush you into surgery.. It's a money maker for sure... My husband had cataract surgery and believe me... he was having problems with his vision.. he was seeing double and couldn't focus his eyes.. He has the same doc as I do. The surgery completely corrected his problem.
 
Lolly said:
I wear glasses also... CeeCee... I would consider getting a 2nd opinion.. If your cataracts are early and not causing you any problems yet that you have even noticed.. perhaps this doctor is a bit too eager to rush you into surgery.. It's a money maker for sure...
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Thats what I was thinking but he was a referral like everything is now. My insurance has to approve everything.

He does have good reviews and is located in the huge Eye Institute bldg here in Fresno, right across from the hospital. I'm sure his rent is high...Ive never been in an office so big.

I was taken from room to room for every different test and different people did everything before I even saw the Dr.
 

CeeCee said:
Ive put drops in my eyes many times, is this different or have I been doing it wrong all this time? My eyes get dry so I use an OTC eye drop on occasion.
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No difference at all. It's just that some people cannot put the drops in their own eyes. They can't keep their eye open with the dropper staring them in the eye.

They have to get someone to do it while they look up at the ceiling.

My eyes are dry as well. I just pull the lower lid down and put the drops there but some people can't do that. They blink whenever the dropper approaches.
 
Camper6 said:
No difference at all. It's just that some people cannot put the drops in their own eyes. They can't keep their eye open with the dropper staring them in the eye.

They have to get someone to do it while they look up at the ceiling.

My eyes are dry as well. I just pull the lower lid down and put the drops there but some people can't do that. They blink whenever the dropper approaches.
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Then I'm doing drops the wrong way...I just pull down my lower lid a little and put the drop in there and close my eyes so it goes everywhere...is that wrong?

ok, I see you added info to the post and answered my question before I asked.
 
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A cataract is the lens in your eye that has lost its clarity and is becoming cloudy.

The surgery consists of removing it and replacing it with a new clear, flexible plastic lens.

If not taken care of, your vision is impaired to the point of seeing halos around any light source.

In " The old days, they didn't insert a new lens; they just prescribed new eyeglasses with "Coke-bottle-bottoms lenses.
 
Falcon said:
A cataract is the lens in your eye that has lost its clarity and is becoming cloudy.

The surgery consists of removing it and replacing it with a new clear, flexible plastic lens.

If not taken care of, your vision is impaired to the point of seeing halos around any light source.

In " The old days, they didn't insert a new lens; they just prescribed new eyeglasses with "Coke-bottle-bottoms lenses.
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That doesn't sound painless and easy to me, lol.

Truth is I don't see perfectly with my glasses on but it's barely noticeable. Driving on a very sunny day I do have some trouble reading the signs further away but that's about it.
 
CeeCee said:
That doesn't sound painless and easy to me, lol.

Truth is I don't see perfectly with my glasses on but it's barely noticeable. Driving on a very sunny day I do have some trouble reading the signs further away but that's about it.
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That's exactly how it is for me.. I have a very slight problem with focusing my left eye.. (that is the eye with the cataract)... but I hardly notice it either.. When my otphamologist tests my vision however, I'm 20/20 with my glasses.. My cataract is developing.. so he wants to see me in another year.. unless of course my vision drastically worsens. We go year to year with the surgery decision.. so far it's not warranted according to my doctor.

Food for thought... Something is paying for that big fancy office...
 
One question they asked me before my cataract surgery was...did I want better vision close up or far away, I chose far away for driving...One of the test was to determine if I had macular degeneration, which I did, but mine is in early stage.
 
Jackie22 said:
One question they asked me before my cataract surgery was...did I want better vision close up or far away, I chose far away for driving...One of the test was to determine if I had macular degeneration, which I did, but mine is in early stage.
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I have my eyes dilated and examined every year.. because I have a distant family history of glaucoma.. So far.. Knock on wood.. my eyes are healthy except for developing cataracts and some pesky "floaters" which are also a normal part of aging. No optic nerve damage and no macular degeneration..
 
Jackie22 said:
One question they asked me before my cataract surgery was...did I want better vision close up or far away, I chose far away for driving...One of the test was to determine if I had macular degeneration, which I did, but mine is in early stage.
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I think I'd choose faraway also but I thought both would be better after surgery. When you say close up, do you mean for reading?
 
Lolly said:
I have my eyes dilated and examined every year.. because I have a distant family history of glaucoma.. So far.. Knock on wood.. my eyes are healthy except for developing cataracts and some pesky "floaters" which are also a normal part of aging. No optic nerve damage and no macular degeneration..
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Im in the same boat as you....I did have some high eye pressure that requires drops but it's not glaucoma...my father had glaucoma so I do see an opthamalogist once a year at least but was going to one by my daughter in Monterey...at the time I was paying out of pocket and he was cheaper than Fresno and my daughter could drive me if needed but after Medicare and my supplemental which is a PPO I needed a referral in Fresno.

Its interesting how different the 2 drs are...office and staff wise. I spent 2 hrs yesterday here in Fresno and at the one in Monterey I was always out in 15 mins. He's the one that said I don't have cataracts except forming behind my eye and it would be awhile before anything needed done.

Fast forward 18 months and I have cataracts:(
 
Jackie22 said:
One question they asked me before my cataract surgery was...did I want better vision close up or far away, I chose far away for driving...One of the test was to determine if I had macular degeneration, which I did, but mine is in early stage.
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I believe they have replacement lenses now that actually change shape to accommodate both near and far vision. It's controlled by your own eye muscles.. I'm sure those are not covered under Medicare though.
 
Cee Cee, not to worry. I had cataracts for 25 years before they required surgery. I wouldn't have known I had them unless I had asked. My doctor said I would know when it became to bad to deal with, and so will you. What you say is slightly bothersome now so far as your vision will become worse, and you will decide. The surgery is not even worth calling surgery, and remembering to put drops in so often is the worst part of it all.

Good luck, but I think you may have a while to go before having it done.
 
Katybug said:
Cee Cee, not to worry. I had cataracts for 25 years before they required surgery. I wouldn't have known I had them unless I had asked. My doctor said I would know when it became to bad to deal with, and so will you. What you say is slightly bothersome now so far as your vision will become worse, and you will decide. The surgery is not even worth calling surgery, and remembering to put drops in so often is the worst part of it all.

Good luck, but I think you may have a while to go before having it done.
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Thanks, that's how I feel also but this new dr is pushing for it seems....I just did a quick search on him but now I think I'll look into him some more.

Although I have a feeling I don't have much wiggle room finding another ophthalmologist that takes my PPO and Medicare.
 
CeeCee said:
Why the difference? Do you have an option?
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No, I got the same IV anesthesia both times. I slept right through the operation for the right eye. When I had the left eye done, I woke back up again just in time for them to "explode" the cataract and insert the lens. Then I went back to sleep again. It's very, very light anesthesia. You wake up as soon as they stop administering it and most people are immediately alert. I was really hungry after both operations and we went out to eat right after leaving the surgical center.
 
Falcon said:
A cataract is the lens in your eye that has lost its clarity and is becoming cloudy.

The surgery consists of removing it and replacing it with a new clear, flexible plastic lens.

If not taken care of, your vision is impaired to the point of seeing halos around any light source.

In " The old days, they didn't insert a new lens; they just prescribed new eyeglasses with "Coke-bottle-bottoms lenses.
Click to expand...

Not to mention how much brighter the colors are after you have the cataracts removed. I had the eyes done three weeks apart, so I had that amount of time to compare between the two eyes. I realized that I was looking through what was almost a "nicotine" haze; everything had a yellowish tint to it. After the surgery, the colors were so much brighter. A couple of years ago, I had to get a "YAG" procedure done on the right eye, that's where they laser out a film that forms. It's a very simple procedure. You don't even have to have anyone drive you there. Now I need to have it done on my left eye. Some people get the film within months of cataract surgery, some get it years later, some never get it.
 
Oh, another thing I need to mention. Be sure to do your due diligence on the kind of lens the doctor is going to insert. My doctor was pushing the "multi-focus" lens big time and I fell for it. I'll admit I did not do my "due diligence" or I would have seen how many people were complaining about it. I was swept away by the promise that I'd not need glasses for either distance or reading.

Whereas I CAN get along if I have to without glasses for reading if I have enough light, I usually wear "drugstore readers" for ease while reading. The big problem is that it made my night blindness and problem with glare even worse than it was before. Much worse, in fact. I very seldom drive at night now, only when I am very familiar with where I am going and seldom even then.

I had to pay $2,500 per eye over and above what Medicare paid. I'm sorry I went with the multi focus lens. I have nobody but myself to blame for not researching further.
 
jujube said:
Oh, another thing I need to mention. Be sure to do your due diligence on the kind of lens the doctor is going to insert. My doctor was pushing the "multi-focus" lens big time and I fell for it. I'll admit I did not do my "due diligence" or I would have seen how many people were complaining about it. I was swept away by the promise that I'd not need glasses for either distance or reading.

Whereas I CAN get along if I have to without glasses for reading if I have enough light, I usually wear "drugstore readers" for ease while reading. The big problem is that it made my night blindness and problem with glare even worse than it was before. Much worse, in fact. I very seldom drive at night now, only when I am very familiar with where I am going and seldom even then.

I had to pay $2,500 per eye over and above what Medicare paid. I'm sorry I went with the multi focus lens. I have nobody but myself to blame for not researching further.
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Is that for cataracts? I'm under the assumption that I'll still need my glasses after the surgery. Ive had glasses for about 5-6 yrs now...progressive lenses and I needed them and I didn't have cataracts then.
 
I just looked up vision with cataracts and also what the eye looks like with cataracts. I must be in the early stage because my eye looks very normal.

And in the vision image of the bldg. I would say my vision is between the perfect picture and the one next to it, so that's why I was shocked when my dr suggest surgery in a few months.



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And this is where his office is...a lot different than the small one man operation my previous opthamologist had in Monterey. He told me 18 months ago I didn't have cataracts. I guess they can pop up quickly but he makes it sound so urgent.


 
Hmmmm, maybe I shouldn't have posted the videos. He might see them and botch my cataract surgery. :)

I'm just being overly cautious though, my eyesight is very important to me and I want to be absolutely sure I'm doing the right thing.

He does have great reviews and he was very nice and I'm a lousy patient anyway. It was my first visit with him, I'm sure I'll feel more comfortable after my nov 2nd and nov 3rd appointments. My old dr wouldn't have stretched out one appt into two but as long as I'm not paying, I don't care.
 

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