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Will my medical problems prevent me from having surgery? And am I too old for surgery?
Nearly all patients can have my advanced technique of cataract
surgery. A week or two prior to the surgery, you will need to
make an appointment to see your internist or primary care
doctor in order to evaluate your general health (the 'Pre-
Operative Medical Clearance'). Since the surgery is performed
with just eyedrops (no injections to the eye) and is bloodless,
you can even have the surgery without stopping any bloodthinning
drugs such as aspirin or Coumadin. More than 95% of
patients will pass the 'Pre-Operative Medical Clearance'. If your
internist thinks that your health is not optimal (for example, if
you're having episodes of chest pain), then we will defer the
surgery until you're more stable. If you have had a recent
cough, a cold, or the flu then we will postpone the surgery in
order to help prevent an infection in the eye. If you don't have
an internist, I can refer you to a number of excellent ones.
Age is not a limiting factor in cataract surgery. If your internist
clears you for surgery and if you are able to lie still for 5-10
minutes, you should be able to have the surgery. I've done
surgery on many patients in their 90s and some over 100, and
they have done well – they just wished that they had the
surgery 20 years earlier. Patients who lead active lifestyles tend
to opt for cataract or refractive lens surgery much earlier in life.
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