Cataracts are when the lenses in the eye, which are located just behind the iris, become cloudy like a cracked windshield of a car.

They are common and occur in everyone after the age of 60.

Increased risk factors besides age include diabetes, steroid use, trauma to the eye, certain medicines and diseases. If you are considering cataract surgery, this article is for you. Cataract surgery is when your eye surgeon removes the cloudy lens (cataract) and replaces it with a new lens implant, usually a soft, plastic material called acrylic and sometimes silicone.

Here are some lens implant options:
Standard Lens Implant: This lens is used to replace your cataract lens that was removed during surgery. This lens implant can improve your vision, but odds are that you will still need to wear glasses to see at your best. This lens implant is covered by insurance.

Toric Lens Implant:  If you have astigmatism, which is an irregular shape of the cornea, then a toric lens implant can correct your astigmatism and allow you to see at distance without glasses. The toric lens implant is considered an advanced technology lens that is not covered by insurance.

Multifocal Lens Implant: This lens is considered an advanced technology lens implant that allows you to see near, intermediate and distance.  The only approved trifocal lens implant is the PanOptix lens implant. This technology is very advanced and different than trifocal glasses. This lens implant is typically not covered by insurance.

A new category lens implant is the Light Adjustable Lens (LAL) implant that can be customized after the surgery. Once the cataract is removed and replaced with the LAL implant, the surgeon can correct any residual astigmatism and/or nearsighted or farsightedness using a UV light. This new polymer technology is super helpful in patients who have had prior refractive surgery such as RK, PRK, LASIK or SMILE.