Why should I accept cataract surgery if I’m already blind in one eye? Will it help me see again?

If you only have one good eye, it is truly a scary decision to consider having an operation of any kind on the other eye. After all, there is no "back-up" should there be a serious complication. And nobody can tell you honestly there will not be a complication, small or serious.

The decision to proceed with cataract/IOL surgery, then, has to be approached in a more cautious way here than in a binocular patient. There has to be a strongly favorable balance between the prospective gain in vision from the cataract operation and the risks of being made worse, no matter how rare they might be.

Nevertheless, it usually the case that once the decision is made rationally and freely, one-eyed patients are very happy with the results of their surgery because of the noticeable improvement in vision.

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