Cataract Surgery For 'Blind' Eye

[barry1010]

Blind in one eye from birth, now have cataracts in both eyes. I know that advanced cataracts can make the eye look 'odd' so would it be possible to have a cataract removed from the blind eye without having a replacement lens. or would that look 'odd' too? The surgery would of course be purely cosmetic

[jno]

do your eyes look odd? Mine didn't when I had cataracts. They made the rest fo the world look yellow but I didn't realise until they did my first one and compared the vision from the two. But nobody ever noticed that I had them until I had an eye test.

[barry1010]

It's not for me, jno. Advanced cataracts can affect the appearance of eyes, turns them sort of milky. It can be very noticeable.

[jno]

well, do whoever's cataracts actually look milky?

It's only a guess but I suspect at the moment the NHS will do the working one but the patient might have to go private for the other. I'm open to correction by anyone with more recent experience.

Cataracts are the most successful NHS operation, if that's any encouragement.

[Sqad]

To get what you want, you will need bilateral cataract operations and the insertion of intraocular lenses of same size and colour.
I am no expert.

[barry1010]

We'll be paying for the surgery in any case, jno. It is reassuring because the idea of any sort of eye surgery is worrying especially when there is only sight in one eye.

Thanks, Sqad. That's a straightforward answer :D

[sadielady]

I also have one good eye, right eye I can only see light and dark in that eye from birth. Had cataracts in both eyes, the ones in the good eye were removed but they wouldn't remove the ones in my "bad eye" said I would have to go privately. This was 15 years ago. I now have an appointment to to have my eye lasered because the replacement lens has gone cloudy. I don't think my eyes look any different, even with the cloudy lens

[Mamyalynne]

It's well worth enquiring.

See a similar question and answer here on the American site.

https://www.aao.org/eye-health/ask-ophthalmologist-q/removing-cataract-from-blind-eye

[barry1010]

Thanks to you, too, Mamya and Sadie. It's reassuring to know that not everyone with cataracts has the 'milky eye' appearance. It might be worth leaving the blind eye and see what develops.