The question is, what is the best way to correct astigmatism, when one has a cataract? First of all, let's discuss what a cataract is. The natural lens sits behind the iris, is what will get cloudy over time, usually when a person is between the ages of sixty five and seventy five. Astigmatism again, refers to the fact that the cornea is not fully round. It's oval in a certain direction, and there are two focus points in the back. The surgeon can select an implant, where it is curved in the opposite direction, and that will correct the astigmatism, without having to be worried about glasses, to correct that. A cataract surgery since about 1980, has been much better than in the past. Before 1980, we can all remember people who had the very thick glasses, because there was no implants available, which are called intraocular lenses. With cataract surgery today, most surgeons will make a incision on the cornea, just inside the limbus, which is where the white part of the eye meets the clear part of the eye, and then the pupil is very large, with a drop, and then with a particular device, that's called a facial emulsifier. The surgeon goes in and they will pulverize the lens, and with the same instrument, it sucks out the lens, and then the implant actually is foldable, and with forceps, the surgeon will place a new, clear lens, here behind the iris, and it's usually placed in this notch, which is called the sulcus, or actually there's a membrane, which is left behind the lens where the membrane itself, can gild that in place, so today, we don't have to wear thick glasses after cataract surgery. The surgeon and the patient can talk together, about where they want their focus to be, whether it's going to be for the very best distance vision, or they want it for arms length vision, for the computer. There's a wide range of choices, depending upon your occupation.
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