Types of Cataract Surgeries
Although cataracts surgery is advanced these days, there are some cases which require old fashion cataract eye surgeries such as intracapsular cataract extraction or extracapsular cataract extraction.
1- Intracapsular cataract extraction
This is an old way of cataract eye surgeries. As we said the lens is present inside a bag which is called capsule. With this type of surgery, your doctor will remove the whole lens and bag.
This type of cataracts surgery is not common any more because of the complications that occur with it either directly postoperative or after a long period. These complications are aphakic glaucoma, retinal detachment, and macular edema.
2- Extracapsular Cataract extraction or ECCE
In this type of cataract eye surgeries, your eye doctor will made a long incision between the cornea and the sclera or a place called limbus. Then he will open a hole in the anterior of front part of the capsule then he will remove the lens or cataract as a whole without cutting or dividing it.
This type needs suturing the corneal wound. This type of surgery can be done these days for dense cataract in which this cataract can not be cut down by the phaco probe.
3- Phacoemulsification or Small Incision Cataract Surgery
Phacoemulsification is one of the most common surgeries that done worldwide and is the most common cataracts surgery these days. Most of people underwent this surgery will have better vision.
This is a new surgery technique in which your eye doctor will also open a wound in the limbus but it is much smaller than that in extracapsular and most of the time it does not need suturing.
Your doctor will also do a hole in the anterior part of the capsular but it will be more regular than that in ECCE. By using the Phacoemulsification probe which is U/S probe, your eye doctor will divided cataract into small pieces while the cataract still inside the bag and then he will aspirate these small pieces. The duration of this procedure is around 15-20 minutes.
4- Femtosecond Cataract Eye Surgery
Femtosecond Laser cataract surgery or cataract laser surgery is a new technique that involves femtosecond laser to fragments cataract.
