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Cataracts

Cataracts are formed when the lens of the eye becomes cloudy (the usual lens is

transparent).

Usually the transparent lens focuses incoming light onto the retina, which then

travels to the brain via the optic nerve as an electrical signal. If the lens is

cloudy (as in a cataract) however, the image focused on the retina will be

blurry, not sharp.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:

-cloudy or blurry vision

-double vision, or multiple images in one eye (though this may clear once

cataract grows bigger!)

-faded colors seen

-glare i.e. luminous objects seem too bright

-poor night vision

TYPES:

-secondary to another cause, e.g. eye surgery for another reason (e.g.

glaucoma), steroid use on eye, smoking, diabetes.-trauma. This can even happen years after the trauma has occurred.

-congenital cataracts

-radiation cataracts.

CAUSES/RISK FACTORS:

-old age. The lens is mostly made of water and protein, the latter which is

arranged in a precise way so that light can pass through. But as we age the

proteins can clump together and cloud a small area of the lens, forming cataracts.

-smoking.

-diabetes.

-family history

-prolonged exposure to sunlight.

7/31/2019 Cataracts PACES

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