Cataract surgery: Advice, experiences, and what to expect...

Looks like there aren't any other threads on this, and I'm kind of in a rush to find some info for an elderly family member..
So, any suggestions on where to get the surgery done? Should we go private or stick with a hospital?
And what are the wait times looking like lately?
Anything else I should probably know?

thanks!

fadedpilot2 said:Looks like there aren't any other threads on this, and I'm kind of in a rush to find some info for an elderly family member..
So, any suggestions on where to get the surgery done? Should we go private or stick with a hospital?
And what are the wait times looking like lately?
Anything else I should probably know?

thanks!

All I can tell you is that at the Mayo Clinic, you're looking at waiting lists of several months—though they do great work there, for what it's worth.

You definitely won't wait that long privately; plus, the procedure is outpatient (usually using more modern techniques), so you head straight home, whereas at a hospital, you’ll be staying for a day or two. My only uncertainty is the cost for private care—you'll have to look into that yourself.

Thanks so much!
The person I’m asking for already checked in.. and they said it’s looking like $3.25% vision. Which is actually pretty decent..
I think I'll go ahead and check out the waiting lists at some hospitals..

Does anyone happen to have a recommendation for a private specialist?

fadedpilot2 said:Thanks so much!
The person I’m asking for already checked in.. and they said it’s looking like $3.25% vision. Which is actually pretty decent..
I think I'll go ahead and check out the waiting lists at some hospitals..

Does anyone happen to have a recommendation for a private specialist?

Maybe try reaching out to Cleveland Clinic,
where Nikica Gabrić practices—I've heard nothing but great things about him
or Dr. Nadežda Bilić.

So, I checked in with a few hospitals in the meantime, and it looks like the wait times are running about a month or two... so we’ll probably just go with that option.
I guess any info on a doctor recommendation at one of those places would be super helpful right about now.

thanks!

Has anyone here gone through surgery for both open-angle glaucoma and cataracts at the same time?
I’m wondering how long the recovery period for the eye actually lasts.
And what kind of precautions am I supposed to be taking?
The information they provide at the hospital is pretty vague, I guess.
Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone, I’m looking for some insight regarding cataract surgery. It’s for an elderly family member, 80 years old, who finally gave in after a lot of coaxing. During the last eye exam for new glasses, they told us the cataract was there, but we should just wait for it to "ripen" or whatever...
From what we’ve gathered lately, the modern approach seems to be just taking care of it regardless of how advanced it is.
We’ve been scouting out where to get this done, and honestly, several private clinics in Washington, D.C. came up, but the prices are absolutely eye-watering. To make matters worse, most of the specialists at these private places also work at the major public hospitals (like Mayo Clinic, Holy Spirit, or Vinogradska). It makes me worry about that classic catch-22: you go to the hospital, the doctor suggests doing it privately instead, and if you say no, you’re stuck waiting a year or more for a slot at the public facility. What I really want to know is if anyone here has gone through cataract surgery themselves or helped a family member do it? Specifically, does anyone have experience doing it through the public hospitals (like Holy Spirit)?

So, my mom just had cataract surgery yesterday using that ultrasound method, and they went ahead and implanted a new lens.
The bandage came off today, and while her eye looks a little red, her vision seems pretty good—maybe just a tiny bit blurrier than her other eye.
The doctor told us everything was looking fine, but there’s this one line in the discharge papers that’s been playing on loop in my head: "folds in the Descemet membrane in the central part of the retina."
I realize it refers to those little wrinkles in the cornea, but I can't help wondering if the surgery itself caused them, if they'll eventually smooth out on their own, or if they’re actually going to mess with her sight long-term.
Since this is pretty technical stuff, I was hoping maybe a doctor in the group could weigh in here.
Thanks

So, we spent the day at the Cleveland Clinic today. Dealing with high myopia and a thick lens is no joke. We’re scheduled to head in for surgery on one eye in a few days, and if everything goes according to plan, we'll tackle the other one shortly after. It's going to cost $10,000 per eye—fingers crossed that all goes smoothly.

My grandma’s heading in tomorrow to get her cataracts removed, so I’m trying to wrap my head around what this whole thing actually entails—like, what kind of anesthesia are we talking about? And does she have to stay overnight at the hospital or just head home? 😕
If you don't mind me asking, can someone walk me through the actual procedure? I’ve been scouring the web but I can't find anything useful because I don't even know the official name for the surgery... one site says they use an ultrasound probe, while another claims it's all laser—so yeah, please hit me with some real info 🙂

So, about a month ago, my mom had her cataract surgery at Holy Spirit. She showed up fasting at 7:00 AM, went under the knife around 11:00, and the whole thing only took 20 minutes. After that, she just hung out in the recovery area for about two hours—basically done by 2:00 PM. They gave her some IV fluids and stuff, then she had a follow-up the very next day. Since her cataract was super thick and stubborn, they actually had to give her an injection because there was some swelling inside the eye. Now she’s stuck using drops six times a day! It’s ridiculous because everyone else who had the surgery at the same time as her only had to do four times the first week, then three times the second, tapering down to nothing. My mom is finally down to once a day this week, and then I guess she goes back to see whoever referred her, which is where
how they removed the 🤷, but honestly, it's not the end of the world 🙂
Oh, and the anesthesia? Totally local. Just a tiny little prick near the corner of the eye. Seriously, you feel absolutely nothing—it’s like being bitten by a mosquito

I’ve been wondering if it's actually okay to still be dealing with eye pain two months after surgery.
During a follow-up visit recently, the doctor just brushed it off and said everything was totally normal.
But I mean, how can it be "normal" when someone is in so much pain they can barely get out of bed most days?
I really feel like we need to get a second opinion on this situation.
Isn't this supposed to be a routine procedure where you bounce back pretty quickly?
I'm honestly pretty worried about it.

Kenneth Brown5 said:I’ve been wondering if it's actually okay to still be dealing with eye pain two months after surgery.
During a follow-up visit recently, the doctor just brushed it off and said everything was totally normal.
But I mean, how can it be "normal" when someone is in so much pain they can barely get out of bed most days?
I really feel like we need to get a second opinion on this situation.
Isn't this supposed to be a routine procedure where you bounce back pretty quickly?
I'm honestly pretty worried about it.

Get a second opinion, definitely. I've read that recovery takes maybe 2 to 3 weeks for some people, but this level of pain? Absolutely not. Especially not after two whole months... go see another doctor immediately.

jademarlin93 said:Get a second opinion, definitely. I've read that recovery takes maybe 2 to 3 weeks for some people, but this level of pain? Absolutely not. Especially not after two whole months... go see another doctor immediately.

😢

Can anyone who's been through the surgery or just knows the drill tell me what the follow-up appointment is actually like?

Does anyone here have firsthand experience dealing with cataract surgery at San Diego General Hospital? We’re currently based out in Carmel-by-the-Sea, and our private ophthalmologist suggested we head up to San Francisco instead. However, according to , the wait times in San Francisco are stretching out for several months, whereas the queue in San Diego is supposedly only three days
.
So, I am curious if anyone can provide some insight regarding the quality of surgery performed in San Diego, or if it would be more prudent to just make the trip to San Francisco despite the delay
.

Anyone know where I can get cataract surgery done in Washington, D.C. without waiting forever?

I recently went in for a routine eye exam at the Cleveland Clinic, and to my absolute surprise, they found a cataract in my left eye—or rather, what they described as some "mild cloudiness" or a very early-stage cataract. The thing is, I'm only 28. Has anyone else here dealt with cataracts at such a young age? My ophthalmologist told me there's no need to panic just yet, but we’ll need to keep a close eye on it to see how things progress.

wearysailor3 said:I recently went in for a routine eye exam at the Cleveland Clinic, and to my absolute surprise, they found a cataract in my left eye—or rather, what they described as some "mild cloudiness" or a very early-stage cataract. The thing is, I'm only 28. Has anyone else here dealt with cataracts at such a young age? My ophthalmologist told me there's no need to panic just yet, but we’ll need to keep a close eye on it to see how things progress.

Dear wearysailor3,

There’s a chance you might have a congenital cataract—basically something you were born with that maybe no one noticed because it hasn't really messed with your vision yet.

Those kinds of cataracts are usually pretty stable. In most cases, they don't really progress until you hit your 50s or 60s, which is when typical age-related lens clouding usually kicks in.

If this is a new development, though, you should probably get a general checkup with an internist just to rule out any metabolic issues. From there, by tracking how the cataract progresses, we can figure out if surgery is actually needed or if we can just hang tight for a while.

We’d like to invite you in for a cataract screening at George Thompson, which is currently 50% off and comes to $108.

Best regards,
Luka Bilić, Ophthalmologist

Hey there,
So, you get the injection around the eye—what actually happens next? Is it like, a total struggle to keep your eyes open for those 20 minutes while the procedure is going on? I’m looking for all the gritty details, please.

They just strap you in, and it’s over in less than 20 minutes.