Cataracts are more common as you age. In fact, for people who are over 65, there is a 50 percent chance of developing a cataract. As you grow older, the risk increasing significantly.

The difference between a normal lens and one with a cataract.

What Is a Cataract?

A cataract is a cloudy or opaque area in the normally transparent lens of the eye. The cataract prevents light from passing through the lens and focusing on the retina. At first, there may not be much visual disturbance. As the cataract worsens, you will notice blurred vision, sensitivity to light, problems with glare, and distorted images.

There are three types of cataracts, depending on the location on the lens. The one most often associated with aging is the nuclear cataract, which occurs in the center of the lens. The others are the cortical cataract, which is at the cortex or edge of the lens, and the subcapsular cataract, which is under the capsule of the lens.

What Are the Symptoms of a Cataract?

Some of the symptoms of a cataract include the following:

• painless blurring or dimming of vision
• sensitivity to light or glare, especially in bright sunlight or while driving
• increased nearsightedness, requiring changes in your eyeglass prescription
• distorted or ghost images

How Can a Cataract Be Treated?

A cataract may need no treatment, if it causes only a slight blurriness. Once a cataract has formed, there are no medications, eyeglasses, or eye drops that can correct it. The only way to remove a cataract is with surgery. At this time laser surgery will not remove a cataract. It must be done through a surgical procedure, in which an incision is made and the cataract removed. The natural lens is then replaced with a permanent intraocular lens implant. More than 95 percent of patients who have cataract surgery report that their vision is improved. As with all surgery, there is a risk of infection.