Will I need to have cataract surgery again?

In cataract surgery, natural lenses are removed and replaced with artificial lenses. Intraocular lenses should last a lifetime, although if the cataract develops at a young age a replacement may be needed to adjust to vision deterioration caused with aging. Light adjustable lenses may provide an alternative to future lens replacement surgery.

If cataracts develop in both eyes, cataract removal is necessary in both eyes. Opthalmologists perform cataract surgery on one eye at a time - the second cataract will be removed once the recovery from the first cataract operation is complete.

One of the risks of cataract surgery is posterior capsule opacification. The symptoms of this complication are similar to symptoms of a cataract and the corrective surgery is often confused as a second cataract operation. Corrective surgery to repair posterior capsule opacification is not cataract surgery and the condition is corrected with laser eye surgery.