# Cataract Evaluation

A cataract is clouding of the eye's natural lens, causing gradually blurred vision, glare and faded colours. It is assessed and monitored here, with referral for surgery and full post operative care when the time comes.

Cataract is a normal ageing change rather than a disease in the usual sense. The lens inside the eye gradually becomes less transparent, scattering light instead of focusing it cleanly. Vision blurs, headlights develop halos, colours look washed out, and reading needs more light than it used to.

The question is never whether to treat it but when. Modern cataract surgery is among the most successful procedures in medicine, and the timing is driven entirely by how much the cataract is interfering with what you want to do. Someone who drives at night for work reaches that point far earlier than someone who does not.

Assessment, monitoring and the surgical referral happen here, and so does the post operative care. Dr Nguyen and Dr Sincennes both co-manage cataract surgery, which means the follow up visits happen locally rather than requiring repeated trips to a surgical centre.

## Our process

1. **Assessment** (at your annual exam): Lens clarity graded, and the practical impact on your vision and daily life discussed.
2. **Monitoring** (annually): Progression tracked, prescription updated, and glare and contrast assessed as they change.
3. **Surgical referral** (when appropriate): Referral to a cataract surgeon with your records and measurements, when the cataract is affecting what you want to do.
4. **Post operative co-management** (weeks following): Healing monitored and vision assessed locally, with a new prescription once things have settled.


## Questions and answers
**How do I know when it is time?**

When the cataract interferes with things you want to do: driving at night, reading comfortably, recognising faces, or working. There is no measurement threshold that decides it for you.

**Will I still need glasses afterwards?**

Often yes, though frequently much weaker ones. Lens implant choice affects this and is worth discussing with your surgeon. Many people need reading glasses even with excellent distance correction.

**Do you do the surgery here?**

No. Cataract surgery is performed by an ophthalmic surgeon. The evaluation, the referral and all the post operative care happen here.

**Does dry eye matter before surgery?**

Considerably. The measurements determining your lens implant power are taken from the front surface of the eye, and an unstable tear film makes them less reliable. Treating dry eye beforehand improves the outcome.

## Related

- https://eyedoctorphoenixaz.com/lasik-co-management/cataract-surgery-co-management
- https://eyedoctorphoenixaz.com/specialty-eye-care/ocular-surface-disease
- https://eyedoctorphoenixaz.com/comprehensive-eye-exams/senior-eye-exams

---## About this practice
Arizona's Vision Eye Care Center, 15215 S 48th St Ste 180, Phoenix, AZ 85044.
Phone (480) 706-3937. Monday to Thursday 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Friday 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Closed Saturday and Sunday.
Independent optometry practice, founded 1994. One location. Does not perform refractive or cataract surgery.
This site publishes no star rating and no review count, because the figures across the practice's own properties contradict one another and cannot be verified.
This page is general information, not medical advice.