Cataracts

[Del24]

We went for eye test yesterday optician said my wife had cataracts and would write to GP but I refused due to Alz and general poor health.
We agreed he would give my wife stronger single vision glasses to help her see better.
Has anyone had experience of cataract op for PWD.

 

[Grannie G]

My husband had cataracts Del and we managed to avoid surgery.

We were lucky the cataracts developed very slowly and each time I visited I tried to make eye contact with him before I spoke and he always managed to see me.

It isn`t the surgery which is worrying, it`s managing the drops and hygiene post operation.

If surgery can be avoided , I would.

 

[pamann]

Hello Del my husband has cataracts, and Glaucoma, he refused to have any treatment 2yrs ago he has had Alzheimers for 10yrs, he has refused eye drops for 1yr, unfortunatly he will lose his sight, he doesn't read anymore, life would be difficult for him. Would your wife be willing to have her cataracts done, if not there is nothing you can do to make her.

 

[canary]

My mum had a cataract done under local anaesthetic. She was at the moderate stage, but still found it quite traumatic. She wanted it done so that she could see better, but found the whole process difficult. She came back from the op saying "something terrible has happened to me" and that night she was so confused and unsteady that she fell and broke her wrist. She was, luckily very compliant with the op - the surgeon said that she stayed very still throughout - and there were no problems with putting drops in afterwards. The main danger is that they will suddenly move in the middle of the op which could seriously result in them losing the eye and if they dont allow drops afterwards it could result in a nasty infection.

Mums op was a success and she can see better which has improved her quality of life, but I would not go for the other one done too. Whether its a good idea or not depends on how far along the dementia path he is, how much improvement in vision he is likely to get, whether he would stay very still for 20 mins (they do keep reminding them) and whether he would allow drops 4 times a day for several weeks afterwards,

 

[ka7e]

My husband had a cataract op last year. The first time he went in, he had all the pre-op tests OK, but at the last minute the surgeon refused to operate. He said Bill did not respond well to verbal instructions (they had to take his hearing aid out) and he doubted Bill would stay still.
A month later, he had the op under a general anaesthetic. I was allowed back to sit with him during recovery so the first thing he saw was someone he knew. If I couldn't have been there, the staff had a leaflet full of personal information about him, his family and pets, likes and dislikes - so that if he was confused they would have some frame of reference to chat.
He doesn't remember the op at all and sometimes comments how well he can see out of one eye compared to the other!