Patient Education

IOL Treatment Options for Patients undergoing Cataract Surgery

Anatomy of the Eye

• Cornea – This clear, dome-shaped structure on the surface of the eye acts as a window, letting light into the eye.
• Iris – The colored part of the eye, called the iris, is a muscle surrounding the pupil that relaxes and contracts to control the amount of light entering the eye.
• Pupil – The pupil is the round, central opening of the iris.
• Lens – This is the structure inside the eye that helps to focus light on the retina.
• Lens capsule – This elastic bag envelops the lens, helping to control lens shape when the eye focuses on objects at different distances.
• Zonules – Zonules are slender ligaments that attach the lens capsule to the inside of the eye, holding the lens in place.
• Ciliary body – This is the muscular area attached to the lens that contracts and relaxes to control the size of the lens for focusing.
• Sclera – This tough, outermost layer of the eye maintains the shape of the eye.
• Vitreous gel – This large, gel-filled section is located towards the back of the eyeball, and helps to maintain the curvature of the eye.
• Retina – The retina is a light-sensitive nerve layer in the back of the eye that receives light and converts it into signals to send to the brain.
• Macula – This is the area in the back of the eye that contains functions for seeing fine detail.
• Optic nerve – The optic nerve connects and transmits signals from the eye to the brain.
• Refractive Errors
• Normal eye – Light focusus directly on the retina, the back of the eye.
• Dilation – Click here to read our article on eye dilation.

Refractive Errors

Vision correction can typically treat:
Myopia (Nearsightedness) -If light is focused too far forward in the eye, the refractive error is referred to as myopia, or nearsightedness. You can see ‘near’ but not far.

Hyperopia (Farsightedness) – If light is focused too far back in the eye, it is referred to as hyperopia, or farsightedness. You can see ‘far’ but not near.

Astigmatism – Astigmatism can be thought of as the presence of light being focused at two different points. It may exist by itself or in addition to myopia or hyperopia.

These are conditions as a result of your eye not properly focusing light rays on the retina.

Presbyiopia is an age-related deterioration of the lens that begins around 40 and results in poor reading vision.