Very few surgical procedures leave no visible modifications afterward. The majority of procedures at least leave a scar. (Admittedly, the incision and scar that results can frequently be minor and out of the way.
However, the eyes are unique. Yes, small incisions are still used during eye procedures. But the naked eye cannot notice these because they are so little. Therefore, in most cases, eye procedures have little or very little impact on the eye’s external appearance. And having cataract surgery is no different. However, after cataract surgery, the eye may appear slightly different.
After cataract surgery, the eyes’ overall look hardly changes at all. But if you focus closely enough, you can catch a glimpse of the freshly implanted prosthetic lens in the eye. The eyes may be initially more red following surgery, but other than that, there aren’t many differences.
Some people have compared this shimmer or reflection to glassy eyes, a cat’s response, or even the Terminator’s eye. But what really is happening here?
Using Synthetic Lenses Following Cataract Surgery
Your cataract was just your lens before it became a cataract. One-third of the eye’s capacity to concentrate light was due to this lens. After the cataract is removed, this position has to be replaced.
In every case of cataract surgery, a fresh artificial lens is inserted inside the eye. This prosthetic lens occupies the exact same space as the cataract and serves the same purpose, but without the obscured vision that cataracts are known to bring about.
These synthetic lenses are incredibly reliable and secure. Manufacturers have developed sophisticated methods to remove these lenses from spectacles. But even inside our eyes, these lenses are still artificial. They may therefore produce certain peculiar effects that your own natural lens did not.
What Motivates It?
The sparkle you see is light returning to you after reflecting off the new lens’s surface. Depending on the direction of light entering the eye, you may occasionally see this reflection and occasionally not. It may be simpler to perceive this reflection when the eye moves around because it does so quickly.
Why does our own natural lens lack this shimmer effect? The new artificial lens is distinct in size and shape, though. Surprisingly, the replacement artificial lens is just 20% as thick as the cataract it is meant to replace. The artificial lens may be rolled up and inserted through a microscopic incision thanks to its small size. These synthetic lenses have a varied shape because of the size difference, which can make light sparkle and reflect.
The way that different cataract lenses shine varies. The degree to which the lens is flat relies on how much the lens bends light, which in turn depends on how much light is reflected off the lens’ surface. Knowing this information can help you choose lenses that sparkle more than others.
The Refractive Index Measures How Much Light a Lens Bends.
Let’s briefly discuss the mechanics of light. Don’t tune out just yet, hold on!
Light bends when it enters an object from the air. This characteristic is used by lenses to focus light.
The more something is dense, the more light it bends and the greater its refractive index. In other words, materials with higher refractive indices bend light more.
Due to variations in the materials and production processes, several artificial lenses have varied refractive indices. The following list includes the refractive indices of typical cataract surgery lenses:
Light bends more when the refractive index is higher. But a steeper shape also causes light to bend more.
Therefore, lenses with a higher refractive index must be slightly more flat in order to concentrate light in the same way. The lens reflects more light from the surface as a result.
TLDR: After cataract surgery, artificial lenses with higher refractive indices produce more glimmer.
Less glimmer is present in several artificial lenses, including the light-adjustable lens, a silicone-based lens, and the tennis lens. There are more reflections on the surface of some acrylic lenses, such as the Clareon lens.
And Yet, Does It Really Matter?
The small glimmer that results from reflections off the lens’ surface has no noticeable impact on vision. After cataract surgery, the various artificial lenses continue to function flawlessly regardless of how much light they reflect.
The primary result is a minor modification to the eye’s external appearance. Sometimes, the pupil will be lit by light from the reflection rather than being completely dark.
Asking your surgeon about lenses with a lower refractive index, on the other hand, can lessen the effect of the glimmer if it is a problem.
Read More: Can Laser Eye Surgery Fix Astigmatism?
Some Other Ways that Make the Eye Look Different
The only method that conventional cataract surgery can permanently alter the visual appeal of the eyes is by reflecting off a new cataract lens. However, cataract removal may cause the eye to appear redder in the days and weeks following the procedure.
A portion of the red appearance following cataract surgery may be brought on by tiny bruises under the conjunctiva (the white portion of the eye) surface. The conjunctiva has little blood vessels underneath it. When doing cataract surgery, some of the tools used—especially if a laser is used—might cause some of these blood vessels to burst.
An example of this is a subconjunctival hemorrhage. This causes the eye to seem very red, which is made worse if you take aspirin or other blood thinners. Additionally, the redness won’t go away for at least a few weeks.
The pupils can still appear a little bit redder than usual despite these bruises, though. The surface of the eye has a small increase in inflammation and irritation following cataract surgery. The eye becomes more red when it is irritated, like anything else.
After cataract surgery, using the recommended drops promotes the eye’s natural healing process, which eventually causes this redness to subside. Additionally, using preservative-free can hasten the resolution.
Final Words
After cataract surgery, eyes can primarily appear different due to the existence of a faint reflection or glimmer from the freshly implanted lens. The artificial lens’s sparkle is brought on by the difference in shape between it and our own natural lens. Some lenses will reflect light more than others, depending on the material.