Cataract Symptoms

The most common symptoms of a cataract are:

• Cloudy or blurry vision.
• Colors seem faded.
• Glare. Headlights, lamps, or sunlight may appear too bright. A halo may appear around lights.
• Double vision or multiple images in one eye. (This symptom may clear as the cataract gets larger.)
• Poor night vision.
• Frequent prescription changes in your eyeglasses or contact lenses.

These symptoms also can be a sign of other eye problems. If you have any of these symptoms, check with your eye care professional.

Do I need to have my cataracts removed?

A change in glasses or the use of sunglasses may restore good vision. Eventually, the cataracts tend to get worse and must be removed to allow clear vision. The cataract is replaced with an artificial lens called an intraocular lens (IOL), also called an implant, and is made of plastic, silicone or acrylic. Most of the time the only reason to remove the cataract is to improve your vision – so if your vision is adequate to do everything you need to do – then no, you don’t need your cataract removed. As we age, many of us have some degree of cataract formation that is not bad enough to affect the vision.