Welcome to our Pre-Cataract Evaluation Page
Our hope is that this page prepares and equips you with the very best resources available, allowing us to make the best use of your time during your cataract evaluation appointment.
What Should I Expect at My Cataract Consultation?
What to Bring with Your Cataract Consultation:
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Your medical history
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A list of any eye conditions in your family
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A list of any pre-existing conditions that you have
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A list of the medications that you are taking, including OTC and prescription medications
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Any prescription glasses you currently wear, however infrequently.
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Your insurance card(s)
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If you have a Power of Attorney, you will need to bring a copy with you as we will be required to add this to your file.
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Any new patient paperwork that you filled out before the appointment
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A family member or friend to drive you home from the appointment
After checking in to the clinic one of our trained ophthalmic technicians will take you to a private exam room, and review this information. Then they will conduct a thorough visual examination and work-up, followed by extensive diagnostic tests which will measure different aspects of the eye, including the curve of the surface and the length of your eye. Oregon Trail Eye Center uses the most advanced technology and the best equipment in an effort to gather the most accurate information regarding your eye. This will help us determine what type of lens and the power of that lens to go in your eye to replace your cataract.
If you haven't had the opportunity to watch the cataract videos, also available at the bottom of this page, the technician will also play these for you before seeing the provider.
Soon, one of our physicians will meet with you. The provider will listen to you, review your symptoms and vision concerns and then perform a complete dilated ophthalmic examination to evaluate the entire eye. This is to make sure that you actually have a cataract that is visually significant; in doing so, your doctor will also rule out any other ophthalmic diseases that you may have that also can be impacting your vision.
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After this ophthalmic examination the provider will discuss surgical options, intraocular lens selection and answer any further questions you may have.
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Because of the great care and attention we place on this visit, we ask that you expect to spend at least
3-hours at your initial cataract consultation.
After its been determined you are indeed a surgical candidate and returned home, within 2-weeks a surgery coordinator will contact you to review medical conditions and/or medications specifically related to to your pending surgery. They may coordinate a visit with your primary care provider to attain a current history & physical and surgical clearance, which is required prior to surgery. Finally, our coordinator will discuss pre-operative appointment dates, the actual surgery date(s), a first day post-operative appointment and any post-operative visits that follow. Co-management appointments with your referring Optometrist may also be discussed and created during this call.
Steps to a Successful Cataract Consulation
You should expect to spend about three hours at our clinic for your cataract assessment appointment.
1. Medical History
The first step in your cataract consultation is to collect a thorough & complete medical history. This includes identifying and documenting all prescription medications and over the counter medications that you are currently taking, any health issues or conditions you may have and any eye diseases or conditions in your immediate and extended family that you know about. This information is needed in order to determine if you’re a good candidate and if any special precautions need to be taken before, during or after your cataract surgery.
For example, if you have diabetes or are taking a blood-thinning medication, the backs of your eyes may be more prone to bleeding during or after the surgery.
2. Vision Test
The vision test is much like you’d have performed for any vision exam with other important tests. This involves reading lines of letters and numbers on a chart and getting a slit lamp exam, which checked your iris, lens and cornea. We’ll also examine your current glasses/contact prescription. You will then remove your contacts prior to dilation.
3. Eye Examination
The eye exam part of the test involves checking your overall eye health. During this portion, your eyes will be dilated by our ophthalmologist. Typically, both eyes will be dilated to let more light in [to the back of the eye] to help your doctor spot any potential issues. It can take 15-30 minutes for your eyes to fully dilate. For this reason, it is our firm recommendation to bring someone with you who can drive you home. This part of the exam checks the back of your eye and looks for any health condition that may hinder the cataract surgery.
4. Eye Measurements
During your consultation, measurements will be taken of your eye in order to help determine which intraocular lens (IOL) would be best for you. The measurements of your eye will include the corneal curvature, the axial length and the anterior chamber depth.
5. Explanation of Cataract Surgery
Once the exam is complete our eye doctor will explain the cataract surgery and what you can expect before, during and after the surgery.
6. Answering Your Questions
Our ophthalmologist will answer any questions you have about the cataract surgery and clarify anything that may be confusing to you. It's encouraged to carefully review the information on this page, and write down any questions that may elicited while doing so. If you have questions before your eye surgery, you can always call our office and ask.
**Will this be your first ever to our clinic? We recommend visiting this page also.
Cataracts: An Overview - From Beginning to End
Please consider watching these videos at least once. They will provide a brief explanation of what a cataract is, an introduction to cataract surgery, overviews of the IOL choices available to you and risks of cataract surgery. We recommend taking notes and bringing any questions or concerns about these videos, or in general, with you to your cataract evaluation appointment.
Would you like to know more about Cataracts? Click the eyeball...
Thank you for choosing Oregon Trail Eye Center!