Surgery Instructions and forms
Cataract Surgery Instructions
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The surgery is done at Surgicare, which is directly across the street from our office. Pull into the first driveway on the left and drive to the back side of the building. You must have a driver for the day of surgery.
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You will receive a call from one of the nurses at Surgicare the day before your surgery. When they call, they will tell you what time to arrive for your surgery, what time to stop eating and drinking beforehand, and what medications to take the day of surgery.
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The day of surgery, you will be there for several hours. Most of the time you are there is spent in the pre-op area. During that time, you will get an IV in your arm or your hand so the anesthesiologist can give you a mild sedative for surgery. You will be awake for the surgery, but you may feel like you were asleep because you have amnesia from the sedative. It is similar sedation to that of a colonoscopy or endoscopy. You will also get alot of eyedrops in the pre-op area, and these will dilate your pupil and numb your eyes. The nurses will also ask you your name, DOB, and which eye you’re having done.
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You will be in the operating room around 20 minutes, but the surgery itself only takes 5-20 minutes, depending on your surgeon. Most of the time you spend in the room is positioning you and prepping you for surgery (cleaning around the eye, adjusting the microscope, etc.). You can resume normal activity the day after surgery. We do ask that you do not swim for a week, that you do not rub your eye, and that you do not wear eye makeup for a week. Showering and bathing is fine, just try to avoid soap or water in the eye. If you do get soap or water in your eye, make sure not to rub it. There are no injections near the eye during surgery, and there are no stitches or patches involved.
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Your vision will be blurry the day after surgery, you will see your surgeon the day after your surgery for your post operative appointment.
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Your vision will be best approximately 2 weeks after your surgery. You will be seen for a 2 week post operative appointment and any glasses prescription need will be addressed at that appointment.
