Do cataracts make night driving difficulty?

Increased difficulty with night driving is a very common presenting symptom of cataract development. As the natural lens hardens with age in the 40s it then begins to discolor. As this discoloration (and often clouding) advances, it begins to cause light scatter from oncoming point sources of light such as headlights on cars. The effect is much like what happens when driving a car in the rain or with frost on the windshield: the oncoming lights scatter and "wash out" the view.

_Written by J. Trevor Woodhams, M.D. - Chief of Surgery, Woodhams Eye Clinic