About Cataracts at Baltimore Washington Eye Center serving greater Baltimore & Washington, D.C.

About Cataracts

As we grow older learning about Cataracts is an important task for maintaining and preserving your eye health and vision. In order for you to have clear vision light must be able to pass through the optical structures of your eyes and focus properly on the Retina.

The two primary structures that are responsible for refracting, or bending light so that it can focus properly on the back of the eye, are the Cornea, which is the outermost clear curved “lens” that is visible when looking at your eye from the side, and the Crystalline Lens, which is located behind the colored part of the eye, or the Iris, and is not directly visible. The Crystalline Lens will be examined during your eye examination by using specialized instruments to look through the Pupil, or the dark center of the Iris. Both the Cornea and the Crystalline Lens need to be perfectly clear in order for you to have good vision. If you are in good health and have not had chronic eye infections, inflammation or had any trauma to your eyes, the Cornea is likely to maintain its clarity throughout your life. The Crystalline Lens however undergoes a number of changes that progress as we age. These aging changes can affect your vision.

Even if you have had “good eyes” and “normal vision” all your life, your vision is likely to begin to change in a number of ways as we progress from our 40’s, to our 50’s and then our 60’s and beyond. The most obvious changes to our vision occur as a result of these changes in the Crystalline Lens.

The two most common changes that occur in the Crystalline Lens are:

• A loss of flexibility, called Presbyopia, which makes it harder to read and
• A loss of optical clarity, which can be caused by a Cataract.

When we are younger, the Crystalline Lens is usually soft, flexible and “crystal” clear so that it has excellent transparency and optical clarity. As we progress through our 50’s and 60’s, the normally “crystal” clear lens may gradually become yellow and cloudy. When this occurs, you may initially experience a mild blurring of your vision and feel that you might need a change of eyeglasses. As the Crystalline Lens loses its transparency and its optical clarity, you may notice that it is not as easy to see well and comfortably in dim illumination, such as for night driving. You may notice that colors look faded. The cloudiness may also create glare, haloes, light sensitivity and a continuing decrease in your vision. If the Crystalline Lens becomes too cloudy, it may cause a significant decrease in both your day and night vision. These are the visual symptoms that are common for those patients whose Crystalline Lens has clouded and formed a Cataract.

As we get older, Cataracts often become a problem experienced by a great number of people just like you. Cataracts can affect us even if we have had normal vision all of our lives. It is important to note that Cataracts are even more common if we have had certain health problems such as diabetes or taken certain medications such as cortisone for asthma or other types of inflammatory conditions. If you are experiencing vision changes like these, it is important to schedule a comprehensive eye examination and Cataract Evaluation.

Patients wishing to schedule an appointment for Cataract Evaluation in the greater Baltimore or Washington, D.C area will find that Baltimore Washington Eye Center is conveniently located for Cataract patients from Arbutus, Carney, Clarksville, Columbia, Dundalk, Edgemere, Essex, Ellicott City, Ferndale, Glen Burnie, Kenwood, Laurel, Linthicum, Lutherville, Millersville, Odenton Owings Mills, Reisterstown, Towson, Parkville, Randallstown, Rivera Beach, Pasadena, Severna Park, South Gate, and Woodlawn Maryland. To schedule an appointment call us at 800.495.3937.