Why is applying eye makeup within a 24-hour window after cataract surgery generally discouraged by most specially trained ophthalmologists?

Although the typical cataract surgery entry wound is quite small (2-3.5 mm), it is still possible during the immediate surgery period to open it accidentally. This could possibly allow the entry into the eye of bacteria or other materials that could cause infection. It is not at all rare to find contaminants in eye makeup that could possibly cause an infection, inflammation, or even trauma to the eye while trying to apply it. Within a few weeks there should be absolutely no issue with this.

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