I have had cataract surgery on both eyes and it was very simple and the outcome was good. I know many people who have had the surgery with no adverse effects. I would be very selective about the doctor who does the surgery and do follow the eye drops after care religiously.

I can't answer your questions about a MDCR waiver as mine both needed surgery at the same time. I can say that it is possible to get glasses with progressive lens (instead of readers) that you can wear all of the time, if taking readers on and off is an issue.

Edited to say: I assumed you were seeing a board certified ophthalmologist. I wouldn't settle for less and do check his credentials.

I had cataract surgery in my 50's. Early onset cataracts run in my family. Best thing that ever happened to me. I went from very nearsighted to perfect vision. I had the one eye done first because the second didn't need it at that time, but the second eye apparently had a fast growing cataract so I had it done a year later. My doctor was great. No problems at all. My vision was blurry the day of the surgery but cleared up by the next morning, That said, I wouldn't do surgery on the eye that doesn't need it until it does need it. Surgery is surgery and its not without risks.

Is he proposing to do both at the same time? That would be a red flag for me. I would get the bad one done and then make a decision about the other one.

I had both eyes done. Like sas, my cataracts started in my 50s. It was almost impossible to drive at night because the cataracts caused huge bursts of light from headlights of oncoming cars.

I had one done and the other a few weeks later. Absolutely no regrets. I did develop some mild ptosis (drooping eyelid) in one eye after the surgery but it didn't change my mind about the benefits.

I had cataract surgery about a year ago. My right eye had a fast growing cataract and the left eye was developing cataracts. We decided to have both eyes done at the same time (a week apart). I think it’s rare to do both eyes on the same day. It was a very simple procedure and the results were amazing! It was like overnight the world brightened. Be sure to follow the after care procedures to a tee. My doctor gave me a chart for each eye to record the time and eye drops. I taped it to the bathroom mirror to help me remember.

I do have to use readers for close work but my distance vision has never been better. And the clarity - who knew? And yes, there are readers all over the house 😊. Small price to pay.

One of the worst mistakes i ever made was getting monovision when i had my cataracts removed. It sounds like you would have the same result if you only do one eye. Monovision is one eye corrected for distance and the other for reading. My brain could never adjust to the dissonance between my two eyes. I would strongly suggest that you have both eyes corrected for distance now. Of course wait a couple weeks between doing each eye as is the usual procedure.

I was so hoping I could get rid of my regular glasses and just use readers but i am still wearing glasses full time in order to correct my near distance vision in one eye..

If you don’t like taking readers on and off you can get regular glasses that have only bifocals at the bottom and you can leave them on your face all day.

I was not yet on Medicare, but covered by my regular insurance so i had a co-pay of $500 per eye.Stupid me. If i had waited six months until i went on Medicare I would have had no co-pay.

Of course rhere is no reason you can’t have one eye done now, and see how you adjust to it. If it’s uncomfortable or driving you crazy, go back and have the other eye done. Theres no harm in waiting between each eye. The procedure is simple.

Would you do elective cataract surgery on an eye that doesn’t need it now?

Yes, I would definitely have the elective surgery done in order to have a good outcome overall.

Yes, I would do elective surgery on an eye that shows some cataracts. It's exactly what I did. I told the dr., if at all possible could he do both as I'm an artist and I need both eyes to work together so he agreed, he did one which was easy peasy, DH and I went out for lunch afterward. A month later he did the other. WOW, the world looked so different with 20/15 vision. Life was beautiful again.

I had cataract surgery last Fall, one eye and the second 2 weeks later. I could not have the monovision done because of a stigmatism (sp?). And yes, I now need readers for up close ... I also have them all over the house, in my purse, a pair in the car ... and I also read my kindle while watching TV and just put the readers on the top of my head when I'm watching TV. It's something you'll get used to. I also would suggest you do both, just to get it over and done with.

I had Lasik on both eyes 20+ years ago. At the time, I knew I was going to need bifocals or reading glasses with the Lasix procedures. I detest bifocals so chose to finally have Lasik. Fast forward to about 3 years ago and I had a cataract develop in one eye. It was between a grade 3&4 so I could have waited bit decided to proceed. Good decision to go ahead and I would recommend it. The other eye has not developed a need for the surgery.

About a year later, DH needed cataract surgery and decided to have both Lasik and the cataract surgery at the same time. One eye one day and the other eye two weeks later. Perfectly successful both times. Yes, he needs reading glasses but he couldn’t be happier. 20-15 vision in both eyes. Mine is still 20-20 and I have slight astigmatism which cannot be guaranteed to be successfully corrected surgically.

edited finally to correct the spelling of Lasik

Sorry for the mis-typing. I would like to blame autocorrect, but in this case, it was my error. Geez, when you want autocorrect to work, it never does! Thanks mdln for the correction.

I just talked to my doctor. I have decided to have both eyes corrected. They will both be corrected for distance vision and I will need readers. He said that Medicare will pay for the eye that has a cataract that isn't ready now because there will be too much of an imbalance to not have that eye corrected. Truthfully, I would have paid for it myself because I was not comfortable with only having a partial vision correction.

I want to thank everyone who responded. All of you made me re-think my orginal decision not to have both eyes corrected. Your positive outcomes have encouraged me and I hope that I have the same.

Good Luck I had cataracts in my 50's best surgery (and only lol) I've ever had. First eye done and second 2 weeks later.

Unfortunately, many people have vision problems and it depends on how serious everything becomes and if it is treated in time. My wife has a very unpleasant case on this subject. For a long time, she consumed a bladder treatment and started to have severe eye complications and we didn't even know it was related to the treatment she was taking. After much investigation, it was concluded that the problem was Elmiron, part of the treatment for bladder. I was shocked to find out and searched on https://www.drugwatcher.org/elmiron-lawsuit/ to understand everything about it. I pry everything will be fine.

I was surprised to see my topic resurrected. I had the cataract surgeries last August and September. Everything went great! After 63 years of wearing glasses, I now only use readers. I don't need glasses to drive, watch TV, or even to use my laptop computer. (I do need the readers for my phone and ipad, and any other close reading). I only wish it had happened sooner!

Good luck, Andrea.