An important consideration for every patient contemplating cataract surgery is to know the risks and chances of having good results. There is no surgical procedure, even the most simple, that is totally without risk, and cataract surgery is no exception.

The possible complications of cataract surgery range form very minor easily corrected problems to complete irreversible loss of vision in the eye (one chance out of 2000 from infection called endophthalmitis). Very rarely problems with the anesthetics can be a threat to the patient's general health. Fortunately, the most serious complication (endophthalmitis- infection in the eye) is the least likely (0.002%). Retinal detachment (in which the film peals off the back of the eye) can occur in 0.3% of cases, cystoid macular edema (fluid accumulation in the central film) occurs in 0.2% of cases, drooping of the upper lid in 0.5% of cases, hemorrhage in 0.4%, uveitis (inflammation of the iris) in 0.1% of the cases, 0.02% of cases develop macular holes, 0.03% develop preretinal macular fibrosis (small wrinkles developing in the central film area), and ghosting or doubling of the image occurs in 0.009% of patients. Unsatisfactory optical results (patient could read without glasses prior to surgery but not after surgery, but does not require glasses for distance vision) can also occur. It is impossible to cover all possible risks or complications and any lists of complications are always incomplete.

Most complications that do occur can be corrected and the majority of patients never have any of them. It is not possible to describe all complications or causes of a less than satisfactory result. The chances of having a good result from your surgery is about 98% - not 100% but still very good odds.

Every person who has a cataract must weigh in his/her own mind these risks against the amount of trouble his cataract is causing him and the amount of improvement he can look forward to if all goes well.

When discussing risks, one other important item must be mentioned. Many people have the mistaken impression that the use of a lens implant at the time of surgery significantly increases the risk. Numerous studies show that this is not the case. If we consider 100 patients having surgery without an implant and 100 having surgery with an implant, we find that essentially the same number in each group will have complications with one exception. You are more likely to get a retinal detachment if no implant is used and if the posterior capsule is open. With a few rare exceptions, it is possible to have all the same complications without an implant as with it, and just about as likely. In other words, it is the surgery itself which produces the risk, not the use or non-use of an implant lens.