10 Steps to Seeing Anew: Your Essential Guide to Cataract Surgery Success

5. Anesthesia During Surgery

In most cases, individuals will receive local anesthesia during surgery for cataracts. This is done for several reasons. One of these reasons is that the surgery itself tends to take less than an hour, which lowers the need for general anesthesia. In addition, using local anesthesia lowers the risks associated with anesthesia. Patients may have choices in their local anesthesia. Some of them will be able to have topical eye drops to numb their eye for the procedure. Others may wish to have an injection to block their nerves around the area. Patients may also receive intravenous medication before the cataract surgery to keep them calm. Overall, local anesthesia will keep patients comfortable and often leaves them with little memory of the surgery. Of course, some patients may require general anesthesia during their cataract surgery. This form of anesthesia is often reserved for extremely anxious patients and those who will have trouble remaining still during the procedure, such as individuals with Parkinson's disease.