At Woolfson Eye Institute (WEI), cataract surgery is performed on an outpatient basis in our state-of-the-art Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC). You may be asked to skip breakfast and avoid drinking liquids, depending on the time of your surgery. Also, do not wear eye makeup on the day of surgery. Upon arrival at our ASC, you will be given eye drops to dilate your pupils and perhaps a sedative to help you relax. A local anesthetic will make the surgery painless.

Please click below for a brief but detailed animation.

Prior to cataract surgery, the skin around your eye will be thoroughly cleansed and sterile coverings will be placed around the surgical site. Your Woolfson surgeon, under an operating microscope, will make at least one small incision into the eye and remove your cloudy lens (the cataract). This can be performed using an ultrasound-driven instrument that "sonically" breaks up the cataract as it is suctioned out of the eye. In another surgical method, special instruments are used to mechanically break up the cloudy lens into small pieces and remove them directly from the eye through the small incision. The surgeon will insert an IOL to replace the natural lens that was removed which is typically made of a plastic or silicone. Most cataract surgery incisions are self-sealing, but in rare occasions they may need to be sutured. These sutures rarely need to be removed.

After your cataract surgery, the surgeon will usually place a protective shield over your eye, and after a short stay in the outpatient recovery area in our private ASC; you will be ready to have someone drive you home. Your surgeon will prescribe eye drops to administer several times daily during the next few weeks as you wear your protective eye shield whenever sleeping or napping. You may also be given sunshades to help protect your eye(s) in bright light. While healing, you might experience some blurred vision during the first few days or weeks following the procedure. During at least the first week of your recovery, it is essential you avoid:

• Strenuous activity and heavy lifting (nothing over 25 pounds).
• Bending, exercising and similar activities.
• Water that might splash into your eye and cause infection. Keep your eye closed while showering or bathing.
• Any activity that would expose your healing eye to dust, grime or other infection-causing contaminants.

Always follow your surgeon's specific instructions, which you will receive prior to discharge from WEI’s ASC.