Intracapsular Cataract Extraction


A traditional cataract surgery procedure in which the entire natural lens of the eye, including the lens capsule, are removed.  A large incision is required to remove the whole area unlike more modern techniques. 

Like a camera, the eye's natural crystalline lens, which is held in place by a capsule behind the pupil, fine-tunes the focusing of an image.  Most of the focusing is done by the cornea and the lens completes the job.  If the eyes natural lens becomes cloudy, due to the aging process, light rays cannot be passed through and become diffused and cause vision to become hazy.  This is known as cataract.  In cataract surgery, the hazy lens is removed and replaced with a plastic lens, which is permanently implanted in the eye.

In traditional intracapsular cataract extraction, a large opening is made in the eyeball and injected medication cause the zonular fibres that hold the lens in position to dissolve.  Using a probe and liquid nitrogen to freeze the lens, the natural lens is pulled out of the eye.  Once it has been removed, an intraocular lens is inserted in front of the iris.  The eye is then traditionally stitched so that it remains closed until it heals.  This can take up to two months.

The risks involved in this surgery include retinal detachment and eye swelling.  The procedure is generally no longer performed and has been replaced with phacoemulsification.




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