May
16
2010
Is 3 months too soon for someone going for jogging and swimming after cataract surgery?
Posted by: in cataract treatment, tags: After, Cataract, Going, jogging, Months., Someone, soon, Surgery, swimming
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May 16th, 2010 at 11:38 am
i understand , it’s ok .
May 16th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
In the old days when cataract surgery was performed, large incisions were made and the whole lens was removed intact. This was called an IntraCapsularCataractExtraction (ICCE). Then somehow it was noted that the lens could be removed and leave the capsule. Smaller incision, less down time.
Now they use phaco. Phacoemulsification is a little tiny jackhammer that moves about 40,000 times a second (that is the correct number). It makes the hard nucleus of an older lens into dust which is then aspirated out of the lens capsule. Then the cortex of the lens is removed with simple suction which leaves this empty capsule or bag.
A new lens is placed within the bag and the surgeon may or may not use a suture to close the wound depending on whether he made a shelving incision or other self closing incision. With everything ok in the back of the eye, when that patch is removed the person will see normally. Usually a LOT better than before.
The operation is so easily done these days that it’s now being used for refractive purposes. Some people don’t want to screw around with the ocular surface physiology with the laser surgeries and will have a ‘lens exchange’ surgery. It works just fine.
So now to you. If you had a normal phaco and a lens placed in the bag without complications, you can jog within a few days of the surgery. Straining at the toilet would be more ‘dangerous’ than jogging. The only other eye surgery that would limit jogging would be a retinal detachment. Once the retina is healed, jogging again ok.
Swimming? well, that involves water, not so clean water. The corneal incision is only about 3 millimeters, but corneas don’t heall all that fast as they’ve no vasculature. Ask your cataract surgeon about swimming. If you do go, use antibiotic ointment after the swim. The ointments seem to stick around a lot longer than drops. Most people squeeze drops out anyway and then wonder why these lousey drops don’t work!
May 16th, 2010 at 12:39 pm
There is absolutely NO problem whatsoever with jogging or swimming 3 months after cataract surgery. As long as the post operative healing goes as expected I generally allow my patients to return to normal activity 30 days after the surgery date. As to the cornea being avascular, this is of no importance whatsoever as long as the incision was done with what is called a clear cornea incision. This type of incision seals securely as a result of the intraocular pressure from inside the eye. So there is no risk of bacteria entering the incision site after 30 days from the date of the surgery. So you can do whatever you are accustomed to doing now that you are 3 months post op. You can sky dive, you can scuba dive, you can even be shot out of a cannon if you want! Everything is fine! Go for it!
May 16th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
No. You could start doing outdoor activities even as early as 1-2 months. Cataract surgery using the technique of phacoemulsification wherein small incisions were made and sutures were not placed allows faster healing time. Jogging, swimming, biking, racket sports…. all these can be done as long as your eye is protected from blunt trauma.