A new study of same-day cataract surgery on both eyes suggests the bilateral procedure is safe and effective. That’s good news for anyone who has cataracts in both eyes and wants to see better as quickly as possible.
The study evaluated 94 patients who had cataract surgery performed on both eyes the same day and 100 patients who had bilateral cataracts but had surgery performed on each eye on separate days, which is the way cataract surgery is typically performed.
In the same-day surgical group, the cataract surgeon performed cataract extraction with intraocular lens implantation on one eye, then immediately performed the same procedure on the second eye.
After surgery, the mean visual acuity in the eyes of both groups was approximately 20/25, and no significant difference in visual acuity was noted between the two groups. In addition, 96.8 percent of eyes in the same-day surgical group and 97.0 percent of eyes in the separate-day surgical group were within 1.00 diopter (D) of the desired refractive endpoint, and there were no sight-threatening complications during or after surgery in the two groups.
The researchers concluded that same-day bilateral cataract surgery appears to be a safe and effective option for people with cataracts in both eyes, and patients are very satisfied with the procedure.
The study was conducted by the Department of Ophthalmology, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine in Seoul, Korea. A full report of the study appears in the March 2009 issue of Japanese Journal of Ophthalmology.
Tags: bilateral, Cataract Surgery, same-day