WHAT DOES “NO STITCH, NO NEEDLE” CATARACT SURGERY MEAN?
At Davidson Eye Associates, we use the most modern method of cataract removal available called phacoemulsification (see question 14 for details). In most cases, it takes literally only an hour or two out of the day to have this done, and the procedure itself rarely takes over 15 minutes. Generally only numbing drops are used, and IV needle sticks or injections of medicine around the eye are rarely necessary. The incision into the eye for the operation is usually less that 1/8th of an inch, not much more than a puncture wound. Therefore, the incision is so small that it is actually self-sealing and usually does not require any stitches to close. Thus the term, “no-needle, no-stitch.” In fact, right after the surgery, the eye is rarely even red, and patients are generally able to resume their normal activities and lifestyle the same day as their surgery. Uncommonly, there are circumstances, however, where it is actually safer to remove an unusually hard or extremely large cataract throug
