By KEITH BATES, MA, FRCS, FRC Ophth, Consultant Ophthalmologist practising at Nuffield Health Taunton Hospital and Taunton & Somerset NHS Foundation Trust

MORE than 340,000 patients underwent cataract surgery in the UK last year making it one of most commonly performed surgical procedures in our hospitals.

Cataracts form as the natural lens of the eye becomes less transparent making the vision cloudy or misty, usually as a result of age related changes but cataract development can be linked to other factors such as trauma and diabetes or related to other eye conditions, for example a high degree of short-sightedness.

Tobacco smoking, prolonged exposure to sunlight and poor diet can also be implicated.

Corrective surgery involves replacing the natural lens with an artificial implant in a short day-case procedure.

A small incision is made in the cornea and a probe inserted which breaks up the natural lens using high frequency sound waves and the lens remnants are then removed by suction.

The new lens is carefully positioned within the lens capsule, usually no sutures are required and the eye settles quickly after the operation so that most everyday activities can be resumed within a few days of surgery.

A variety of different lens implants are available and many patients find they are spectacle independent for many tasks after cataract surgery, often for the first time in their adult lives.

A cataract information event will take place on November 20 at 7pm at the Nuffield Health Taunton Hospital in Staplegrove Elm, Taunton. For details call 01823-478285.