On average, cataract surgery is the most common procedure performed by an ophthalmologist each year. Most operations are performed easily and successfully without complications. All operations and surgical procedures have risks and can have unsuccessful results or associated complications that can injure the patient, or even cause death in some instances. The recognized, specific risks of cataract surgery include problems that can lead to loss of vision, blindness or loss of your eye. Those risks include: bleeding; infection; high eye pressure; a swollen or detached retina; a droopy eyelid; double vision; displacement of the lens or portion (fragments) of the lens; injury to the cornea, iris, sclera, conjunctivae, pupil function, or other parts of the eye and nearby structures, from the operation or the anesthesia.
Sometimes pieces of the lens cannot be completely removed and the vitreous can become displaced. The specific, recognized, risks of a Limbal Relaxing Incision (LRI) or Astigmatic Keratectomy (AK), if performed in conjunction with cataract surgery are similar to those for cataract surgery, but also include perforation to the cornea, damage to the iris, increased astigmatism, and scarring, which could cause loss of vision. Furthermore, the LRI or AK may not fully correct the astigmatism and an under- or over-correction could occur, and eyeglasses, contacts, or another surgical procedure may be needed to correct the vision.
Depending upon your eye and the type of IOL that is used, the most serious, recognized side effects include: increased night glare or halos, double vision, ghost images, impaired depth perception, decreased contrast, blurry vision, and decreased night vision. At the time of your cataract surgery, your ophthalmologist may make the decision not to implant an IOL even though you may have given prior permission to do so, or your ophthalmologist may make the decision to implant an IOL different from the one that you initially preferred once the surgery underway and more information is acquired about your unique case. The goal is to provide you with the best, personalized ophthalmology solution for you. In some cases, the IOL may later need to be repositioned, replaced, or removed by way of a subsequent surgical procedure. No intraocular lens or power calculation is perfect. You may likely still need eyeglasses. Calculating IOL power is difficult in patients who are highly nearsighted or farsighted, as well as in patients that have had previous eye surgeries such as cornea surgery, glaucoma surgery, refractive surgery or retina surgery. This difficulty in calculating IOL power may result in your post-operative prescription being different from what you and the doctor thought it would be. This may require you to wear eyeglasses, contact lenses, need refractive surgery, or have an IOL exchange or piggyback lens placed. Because only one eye is operated on at a time, you may experience a feeling of imbalance between the two eyes that may require correction.
There is no guarantee that cataract surgery or astigmatism reduction will improve your vision, even with eyeglasses or contacts. You may need eyeglasses or contacts for best vision. In some cases, complications may occur weeks, months or even years later.