Cataract Surgery: Ancient And
Modern
A cataract is a clouding of the lens of the eye as though
grease were dabbed on the lens of a camera, impairing
vision.
The first known reference to cataract surgery was in
India, it is thought, in a Sanskrit manuscript from the 5th century
BC written purportedly by a
Hindu surgeon named Susruta.
Dr. Susruta did a type of cataract surgery known as
couching (or reclination) in which the lens with the
cataract was displaced. The diseased lens was pushed away
from the pupil into the back of the eye. This permitted
the patient to see somewhat better but by no means normally
because the patient's own lens was then of no use and a
corrective lens was not available to substitute for it.
Couching was still practiced in Egypt, India and Tibet
until the middle of the 20th century.
In the West, the first written description of the
cataract and its treatment appeared in 29 AD in De
Medicinae by the Latin encyclopedist Celsus.
Celsus described the practice of needling (also called
discission) of cataracts. This was a technique in which the
cataract was broken up into smaller particles, which
facilitated their absorption.
Modern cataract surgery was first done in France by
Jacques Daviel in 1748 who removed the cataract
from the lens. Later surgeons removed the clouded lens in its
entirety.
Today, most cataract surgeries are performed using
phacoemulsification, breaking up the lens with ultrasound and
suctioning it out. Then an intraocular lens (IOL) made
of plastic is inserted. The operation which takes about an hour and
often needs no hospitalization has revolutionized the
treatment of cataracts.
The treatment of cataracts has come a long ways from the
5th century BC.
For additional information, please visit the MedicineNet.com Cataract Center.
This Health Fact is in part based on information from
the Museum of Ophthalmology of the American Academy
of Ophthalmology.
Last Editorial Review: 7/7/2004
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