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Cataract Surgery

North Georgia Eye Associates is on the leading edge of this technology as the first practice in Georgia to perform laser cataract surgery.

what is

Cataract Surgery?

A standard part of the aging process, a cataract is a cloudiness of the eye's natural lens that dims or blurs vision, often causing a glare or halo around lights at night and difficulty seeing or reading in low light. If your sight becomes too poor to carry on routine activities, the solution is to surgically remove the clouded lens and replace it with an artificial lens or IOL (intraocular lens).

Cataract surgery is a very safe procedure, with more than two million surgeries performed worldwide annually. Laser cataract surgery has also improved precision and visual outcomes, with fewer patients needing to wear glasses after the surgery.

The board-certified doctors at North Georgia Eye Associates remove cataracts on an outpatient basis with far greater precision by microsurgery. After removal of the cataract, we place a new lens in the eye using the same microscopic incision, with faster recovery and reduced dependence on glasses.

As a result of this progress, cataract surgery is significantly simpler, which means increased patient comfort. More than 2 million cataract procedures are performed worldwide annually.

How Do You Know If You Have Cataracts?

If you have a cataract, you may notice signs like:

Blurry vision
Increased light sensitivity
Glare and halos that make it more challenging to be in well-lit environments
Finding it more challenging to drive at night
More frequent prescription changes to your glasses or contact lenses
Noticing colors appear faded or yellowed or are less vibrant than they once were
Double vision in only one eye
Increasingly impaired vision
Injuring yourself more often

These are only some of the signs of cataracts. If you suspect you could have cataracts, schedule an appointment with your ophthalmologist at North Georgia Eye Associates.

Laser Cataract Surgery

laser surgery

Safe and Precise

One of the safest ophthalmologic procedures, laser cataract surgery, is even more precise, and recovery time is faster with state-of-the-art bladeless laser technology. North Georgia Eye Associates is on the leading edge of this technology as the first practice in Georgia to perform laser cataract surgery.

Like traditional cataract surgery, an incision is made in the eye, the natural clouded lens is removed, and a new lens is inserted. The laser replaces the hand-held blade to allow the most precise and smallest possible incision, about 1/18th inch.

The computer-controlled laser allows our cataract surgeons to plan and perform the surgery to exact individual specifications not attainable with other surgical methods, resulting in better overall vision.

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Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery

State-of-the-Art Technology

North Georgia Eye Associates continues to invest in technology, bringing state-of-the-art procedures to Northeast Georgia.

North Georgia Eye Associates ophthalmologists Matthew B. Kaufman, Matthew W. Hollar, and Bhairavi Dholakia performed Georgia's first laser cataract surgery, bringing a new advancement in cataract treatment to the state and region. The procedure results in faster recovery and more consistent surgical outcomes.

Like LASIK surgery, the Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery uses a computer-controlled laser that allows the surgeons to plan and perform the surgery to exact, individual specifications not attainable with other surgical procedures.

All North Georgia Eye Associates ophthalmologists — Matthew B. Kaufman, Matthew W. Hollar, and Bhairavi Dholakia — are trained and perform the Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery.

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Premium Iol's

Personalized Options

North Georgia Eye Associates is also the first practice in Georgia to use an innovative technology called Verion. Verion is an image-guided system that guides the laser during cataract surgery, eliminating many surgical variables and achieving even better results.

North Georgia Eye Associates ophthalmologists use the Femtosecond Laser, the LuxOR LX3 ophthalmic microscope, and the Centurion vision system to perform laser cataract surgeries. With the addition of the Verion machine, the surgery center is now utilizing the complete Alcon Cataract Refractive Suite.

Several lenses also help patients enjoy crisp, clear, and potentially glasses-free vision from near, far, and everywhere in between. North Georgia Eye Associates can help you choose the right lens implant for optimal vision after surgery.

Learn more about our premium lens options

ORA (Optiwave Refractive Analysis)

The ORA SYSTEM® with VerifEye®+ technology is one of the technologies your doctor will use to tailor your cataract procedure to your unique eye.

Cataracts are a natural part of the aging process. You didn't choose them, but you did choose your doctor — and you can choose how they're treated. By now, you may have heard about customized cataract procedures designed to correct conditions such as astigmatism and presbyopia during your cataract procedure. The ORA SYSTEM® with VerifEye®+ technology is one of the technologies your doctor will use to tailor your cataract procedure to your unique eye.

Basic cataract surgery is generally a safe and common procedure that removes your cloudy lens but does not address other visual disorders. To ensure best-case results after basic cataract surgery, you may need follow-up visits and glasses to correct visual disorders like astigmatism — potentially delaying improvements to your vision.

Like a GPS, the ORA SYSTEM® helps your doctor navigate your unique eye during surgery. This provides your doctor with the real-time guidance they need for more satisfactory results before you leave the operating room.

How does the ORA SYSTEM with VerifEye+ technology work?
How will customized cataract surgery enhance my outcomes?
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ALLY

LENSAR ALLY Adaptive Cataract Treatment System is the first platform to combine imaging and a dual-pulse femtosecond laser in one system, making it the future of cataract surgery. Benefits of using the ALLY system during laser cataract surgery include:

An ability to perform a completely sterile femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery
A superior surgical workflow for both your surgeon and the patient experience
A significantly reduced cataract surgery time
Highly precise corneal incisions
Superior management of astigmatism with unsurpassed precision of toric IOLs and arcuate incisions
Creation of a precisely centered anterior capsule opening during laser cataract surgery to ensure optimal outcomes
Optimization of the femtosecond laser and phacoemulsification treatments to reduce energy delivered to the eye

ALLY uses Adaptive Intelligence to optimize femtosecond laser and emulsification treatments. Using Cataract Density Imaging, available in the LENSAR Laser System, ALLY can automatically categorize the density of a cataract while also identifying the nucleus and layers of the lens of the cataract. With this information, ALLY can provide a tissue-specific treatment that's customized to fragmentation patterns along with energy settings unique to each surgeon.

In turn, patients can look forward to the most precise and accurate results following laser cataract surgery, less time spent recovering, and more time to enjoy their new, beautiful vision.

Cataract Surgery Preparation

How to Prepare for Surgery
Morning of Surgery
Things You Will Need
Post-Surgery Expectations

Cataracts Doctors

Get Started

Learn more about cataract surgery and if it may be time to have this procedure by requesting an appointment at North Georgia Eye Associates today!
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