What are the early symptoms of cataracts?

Written by Wang Hui Zhen
Ophthalmology
Updated on April 23, 2025
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Cataracts are a vision-impairing disease caused by the clouding of the lens, a crucial optical component in the human eyeball, which is normally transparent. The clouding occurs due to the denaturation of lens proteins for various reasons, leading to various degrees of vision impairment in patients. Some patients with cataracts may not exhibit noticeable symptoms in the early stages, while others may experience mild blurriness in vision initially. As the cloudiness of the lens gradually worsens, the blurring of vision progressively intensifies. Some may even experience symptoms like nearsightedness, double vision, strabismus, or glare. If these symptoms occur, it is advised to seek prompt medical attention from an ophthalmologist, undergo relevant examinations, and based on the extent of lens cloudiness, decide whether cataract removal surgery is necessary.

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Written by Peng Xi Feng
Ophthalmology
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Cataract is what?

All sorts of reasons, such as aging, genetics, local nutritional disorders, immune and metabolic abnormalities, trauma, poisoning, radiation, etc., can cause metabolic disorders in the lens, leading to the denaturation of the lens proteins and resulting in opacity known as cataract. At this point, the light is obstructed by the opaque lens and cannot be projected onto the retina, causing blurred vision. It is commonly seen in people over the age of forty, and the incidence increases with age. This disease can be divided into congenital cataracts and acquired cataracts. Congenital cataracts are also known as developmental cataracts, and there are six types of acquired cataracts.

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Written by Peng Xi Feng
Ophthalmology
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Postoperative complications of cataract surgery

Complications after cataract surgery are relatively common and include the following types: First, incision leakage, leading to a shallow anterior chamber; Second, pupil block; Third, damage to the corneal endothelium, causing persistent corneal edema, and even bullous keratopathy; Fourth, anterior chamber hemorrhage; Fifth, epithelial implantation in the anterior chamber; Sixth, postoperative uveitis; Seventh, increased intraocular pressure; Eighth, abnormal positioning or dislocation of the intraocular lens; Ninth, macular edema, and retinal detachment can also occur.

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Written by Zheng Xin
Ophthalmology
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Do cataracts replace the lens?

Cataracts refer to the clouding of the lens, leading to decreased vision. Cataract surgery involves removing the cloudy lens and replacing it with an artificial one to restore vision. Simply removing the cataract lens does not restore vision, as it leaves the eye in a highly hyperopic (farsighted) state. An artificial lens must be inserted to improve vision and correct the eye's refractive state. Therefore, cataract surgery necessitates the replacement of the lens.

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Written by Hu Shu Fang
Ophthalmology
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Postoperative Care for Cataract Surgery

Post-cataract surgery, it is crucial to maintain eye hygiene. Patients must follow the doctor's orders, regularly use antibiotic eye drops to prevent eye infections, and avoid allowing bacteria to enter the eye and cause intraocular inflammation, a very frightening postoperative complication. If intraocular inflammation occurs, the eye will become red and painful, and vision will significantly decrease, necessitating emergency surgery. Therefore, patients should clean their hands, apply eye drops on time, avoid letting tap water enter the eye, and refrain from rubbing their eyes to prevent reopening the wound and bacterial invasion. After surgery, it is also important to keep bowel movements regular to avoid constipation, which can increase abdominal pressure and cause eye pain due to straining.

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Written by Tao Yuan
Ophthalmology
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Will the pupil turn white in the early stages of cataract?

Cataracts are a common eye disease in ophthalmology and are currently the leading cause of blindness in China, posing a serious threat to the eye health of the public. In the early stages of cataract formation, the lens inside the eyeball usually has only mild cloudiness. Visually, from the outside, the cloudiness in the pupil area cannot be seen with the naked eye. However, when a doctor uses a slit lamp microscope for enhanced observation, cloudy patches inside the lens can be detected. At this time, the patient's vision decline is not significant, and surgery might not be immediately necessary; it is feasible to continue monitoring the changes in vision. As the cataract progresses, the area of cloudiness in the lens gradually expands. When it develops to the middle or late stage, white patches can be seen in the pupil area with the naked eye, and surgical treatment becomes necessary.