Cataracts form when the clear area of the eye responsible for focusing light, known as the lens, becomes clouded. The condition is a result of normal changes that occur within either one of your eyes or both as you age. In some cases, cataracts can also be caused by injury or other eye issues.
Regardless of the root cause, cataracts can affect your vision over time. While symptoms may not appear at first, over time, you’ll likely notice some of the following shifts.
What Are the Symptoms of Cataracts?
Clouded Vision
The clouding of the lens that results from cataracts can make your vision appear blurry, foggy, or dim. This is because the cataract scatters light as it enters your lens, preventing sharp images from reaching the retina. Over time, it may become difficult to read or see expressions on someone’s face.
Difficulty Seeing at Night
For many people one of the first symptoms of cataracts is challenges with night vision and seeing in low light.
Some people experience sensitivity to bright lights, such as flashlight beams and direct sunlight. Bright glares from stadium lights, camera flashes, or other intense sources may also aggravate people with cataracts.
Halos
If you see halos around lights, such as the lamps in your home or streetlights on the road, take note. While this could be a symptom of other vision issues, it may also result from the lens clouding caused by cataracts.
Frequent Prescription Changes
Many people experience changes to their eyeglass or contact lens prescription over time. But if you’ve required several recent changes, it could be a result of cataracts. In the early stages of cataract formation, a new prescription may be sufficient for restoring good vision. As cataracts worsen, however, even new glasses or contact lenses won’t be able to compensate for your vision changes. At that stage, surgery may be recommended.
Dulled Colors
Lens cloudiness can also interfere with how you see colors. Some specific shades may no longer appear as vibrant as they once did, or you may see everything slightly tinted more yellow.
Double Vision
Double vision can be a result of several conditions. When it occurs in a single eye and is accompanied by any of the symptoms above, cataracts could be to blame. Surprisingly, some people notice that their double vision actually fades as the cataract becomes bigger.
Cataract symptoms can develop slowly and often cause no discomfort. For this reason, it’s important to receive routine eye exams as you age so a professional can check for signs of cataracts. Our eye doctors can examine you for cataracts as part of a routine dilated eye exam, which is simple and painless.
If you suspect that you might have cataracts, contact Eye Consultants of Atlanta. Our eye care team specializes in cutting-edge cataract treatments, including advanced technology lenses that enable better vision for people who also have coexisting vision issues such as astigmatism. To set up a consultation at one of our offices, call 404-351-2220 or request an appointment online.