Immediately after cataract surgery Once you get home, it is recommended that you rest your eyes and nap.
take it easy for the first 2 to 3 days. use your eye shield at night for at least a week. take painkillers if you need to. bathe or shower yourself as usual.
Most people are able to return to work or their normal routine in 1 to 3 days. After your eye heals, you may still need to wear glasses, especially for reading. This care sheet gives you a general idea about how long it will take for you to recover.
Cataract surgery has a fast recovery rate with only a few restrictions to contend with. With the day of surgery excepted, no bed rest is required. Most patients can return to normal activities the following day.
For at least one week, you should avoid swimming pools and hot tubs. For the next few weeks, you should avoid activities that may lead to getting dirt or dust in your eyes, such as gardening or dusting. Lastly, we advise patients to refrain from cooking for at least one week after cataract surgery.
“High eye pressure can interfere with the incision before it fully heals,” says Eghrari. “Positions that put your head below your waist, such as bending over, can also increase eye pressure and should be avoided initially after surgery.”
Your surgery doesn't come at the expense of your hygiene, but you need to be careful about exposing the eye to direct water for a week. You can resume activities such as washing your face the day after surgery, as long as you are careful to not touch the eye.
Patients with a dislocated IOL may experience a decrease or change in vision, diplopia, and/or glare. Additionally, they may report ocular pain or headaches from intermittent angle-closure and/or inflammation. Some patients also report seeing the edge of the IOL.
You will likely notice that you feel exhausted, especially once you get home after having cataract surgery. This is perfectly normal and you shouldn't try to fight it. Sleeping is a vital part of the healing process, but you will need to be careful.
You should not bend over after cataract surgery for at least 2 weeks. Bending over will place pressure on the eye and this may cause unnecessary complications to your eye. The main complication will be a delay in the healing process. Avoid bending over by following these rules.
Strenuous activity and exercise after cataract surgery
Most people can do very light exercise the day after surgery, including walking.
It is very common to have blurry or unclear vision in the days and sometimes even weeks after cataract removal. Most of the time, this is caused by normal swelling in the eye which occurs as a part of surgery. Patients with larger, denser and/or firmer cataracts are more likely to experience more inflammation.
Your body is using energy to heal itself, so you may feel more tired than normal - this is perfectly normal. Most patients however are very happy with the improvement in their vision.
Cataract surgery and sunglasses
Either way, the surgery has still left your retina vulnerable, and even if you have an IOL with that UV coating, you're still at risk to eye damage due to UV rays. You could even cause your cataracts to return as UV rays are one of the leading causes of cataracts.
Yes, cataract surgery improves your night vision to a larger extent. Night vision improvement will enable you to drive, walk in low lights too.
Your lens is held in place by delicate fibers called zonules. If you've had an eye lens replacement for cataract surgery or refractive lens exchange, your intraocular lens implant (IOL) is held in place by a small sac and these thin fibers.
You won't be able to see or feel the lens. It requires no care and becomes a permanent part of your eye. A variety of IOL s with different features are available. Before surgery, you and your eye doctor will discuss which type of IOL might work best for you and your lifestyle.
If your eye waters or itches, you can wipe it gently with a clean tissue or a sterile, moist cotton swab. Do not have a shower bath for the first 10 days after surgery. You can take a bath below the chin only and use a wet towel to wipe your face. Eye washing with normal water is not allowed for 10 days.
After cataract surgery, you should wait at least 24 hrs before you can bathe and shower. After this you can shower and bathe as normal. When bathing and showering it is important that your eyes are closed, you do not rub your eyes and that you are very careful to not get any shampoo or soap into your eye. .
After cataract surgery, your eyes are more susceptible to infection and complications. Swimming is a bad idea because water is a place where bacteria can grow. Since your eyes aren't at their best, you're more likely to get an infection from the water.
Simple diversions like reading, watching TV, writing, and walking are okay to resume as soon as you feel up for it after your eye surgery. Still, the healing process needs to run its course and vision may fluctuate slightly for the first few weeks before fully stabilizing.
Because a person's risk of infection will be higher following any type of surgery, it is extremely important to wear your eye shield following cataract surgery, even when you sleep. In addition to wearing your eye shield at night, you will also want to avoid sleeping on the side that has been operated on.
As the eyes heal from cataract surgery, a person should focus on maintaining a diet that supports overall health and avoids processed foods, fast foods, excess salt, sugar, tobacco, and alcohol. According to the National Eye Institute (NEI) , most people have cataracts or have had cataract surgery by age 80 years.
Water is one of the best things you can put into your body, especially while it's healing. After cataract surgery, your eyes may need a few days to get used to their new normal. They may even feel a little drier than you're used to. This is another way that drinking enough water is incredibly beneficial!