Visual impairment, especially cataract disease, is still a concern for the Indonesian population. Based on national data from the Ministry of Health's 2014 - 2016 Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB) Survey, with a target population aged 50 years and over, it is known that the blindness rate reached 3.8 percent, with cataracts being the highest cause of blindness at 81%.
Of these, 81.2% of visual impairment is caused by cataracts. Cataract is an eye disorder characterized by clouding of the lens of the eye. As a result, the patient's vision becomes blurred.
Nowadays, technology in the world of health has developed and continues to release new innovations. One of them is in handling the cataract case. Currently, the only treatment for cataracts is surgery. The latest cataract surgery technique is the Phacoemulsification cataract surgery method.
Phacoemulsification cataract surgery is a minimally invasive, micro-surgical procedure that uses ultrasonic waves to break up and then remove the cataract from the eye with the aim of improving the patient's vision.
Phacoemulsification or phaco, as surgeons call it, is used to restore vision in patients whose vision has become cloudy due to cataracts.
In the first stage of cataracts, the person's vision may be only slightly clouded as it affects only a small part of the lens or only the part of the eye that focuses light on the retina.
Then as the cataract gets worse, it can block more light from entering the retina and make vision blurrier. When vision deteriorates, the surgeon will recommend cataract surgery, or phaco, to restore clear vision.
In phacoemulsification cataract surgery, the doctor destroys the cloudy lens of the patient's eye with energy from sound waves (ultrasound) and replaces it with a new lens. After the surgery, no further hospitalization is required, and the patient can go home immediately.
Phacoemulsification is one of the three main types of surgery used to treat cataracts. Some of the other cataract surgeries include:
The old procedure in manual cataract surgery involved using a scalpel to open the cornea and remove the entire lens and lens capsule, making it difficult to insert an intraocular lens (IOL).
A manual cataract surgery procedure similar to the ICCE above, but the lens is only removed with the lens capsule left behind, so that the replacement lens/IOL can still be attached.
Before the Phacoemulsification cataract surgery method was pioneered in the 1960s, eye surgeons would remove the entire lens and capsule (ICCE), making it difficult to accurately fit a replacement lens (IOL). As a result, most people were forced to wear thick and heavy glasses to correct their nearsightedness. After that era, came the ECCE era. In this technique, the capsule is still left out, so a hard/rigid lens can still be attached, but the opening wound is still very large, causing a lot of activity restrictions and a slow healing period.
With phacoemulsification cataract surgery, this is no longer the case. A surgical wound of only 1.8-2.75 mm provides rapid wound healing and vision improvement. The replacement lens (IOL) as a permanent and stable part of the eye is placed through the small wound in a foldable state.
In addition to the phacoemulsification cataract surgery technique, the latest innovative implantable lens (IOL), the multifocal lens, is now widely used. This type of IOL allows the patient's vision to return at a young age i.e. bright at all distances, both long distance, medium distance/computer and close distance or reading distance, without the help of glasses at all. Previously, implantable lenses (IOLs) were only monofocal types that provided distance vision correction only and for close range patients had to use reading glasses.
Phacoemulsification cataract surgery and multifocal lens/IOL implantation are by far the most common cataract surgery techniques performed in developed countries and have begun to develop in Indonesia.
There are several benefits or advantages of phacoemulsification cataract surgery over manual cataract surgery, such as:
1. A smaller incision (±1.8 - 2.75 mm) is required to clean the emulsified lens, reducing not only recovery time but also the risk of complications
2. Phacoemulsification is much faster (± 10 minutes) to perform than either ECCE or SICS
3. The lens capsule is retained, to make it more stable for replacement lenses/IOLs
4. No stitches and no eye strain
5. Patients can go home immediately after surgery
6. Faster treatment and recovery
7. Can be performed on all levels of cataract
8. Reduce pain and discomfort after surgery
Friends of Persada can come and consult complaints and problems about cataracts at Persada Hospital. Persada Hospital has opened cataract treatment services with the Phacoemulsification technique.
With this modern Phacoemulsification cataract surgery technique, Friends of Persada does not need to hesitate because with this technique the healing is faster, provides better results, is more comfortable and is not hospitalized so that it can immediately return to activities.
Visit the eye polyclinic at Persada Hospital Malang to get the right cataract treatment for your condition. Check the ophthalmologist's schedule for further consultation. Learn the latest health information through Persada Hospital's article page.
For more information, please call the Persada Hospital hotline at 081130588585.
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