Saved From Blindness

By Elton Camp Three generations of my family have had vision threatened by a loss of transparency in the lens. A cataract is the clouded lens itself, not a growth in or on the eye despite what some will insist. The Eye Foundation Hospital in Birmingham has figured prominently in our lives over the years. My grandfather was born in the late 1800s as so came to the age for the need for cataract surgery before intraocular lenses were generally available. He spent a week in the hospital and afterward could see, but only with very thick glasses. My parents, my wife, and I were able to benefit from the tremendous advances in cataract surgery to see without requiring glasses. Cataract surgery is routinely performed today so that millions of people avoid the blindness that might otherwise result. One of the most successful operations in the world today, it has been performed since ancient times, but with extreme pain and uncertain results. According to Sanskrit manuscripts from the 5th Century B.C., the earliest type of cataract surgery was couching in which the clouded lens was pushed from the pupil so that it came to lie in the vitreous cavity in the back of the eye. Vision was improved, although still blurred due to lenses being unavailable. The retina might soon detach, resulting in profound blindness.

When Jesus was on the earth, needling was practiced with the goal of breaking up the cataract into smaller particles that might be absorbed, but the results were still quite unsatisfactory.

In the mid 1700s Daviel of Paris learned how to actually remove the inner part of the lens. About five years later, Samuel Sharp in London commenced the practice of using pressure with his thumb to remove the entire lens intact through an incision, but there was no anesthesia and a strong helper was required to hold the patients head still during the painful operation. By the mid 1800s that general anesthesia was developed and some thirty years later, eye drops of cocaine came into use.

Man restrained for eye surgery The operation as it is performed today is painless and highly successful with a low rate of complications, partly depending on the skill of the surgeon. In my own case, after preliminary examination by the ophthalmologist, I arrived at the hospital with little apprehension, experienced no pain, and went home the same day with a patch over one eye and instructions as to eye drops and other simple care. The waiting time was brief and after a last minute medical check by a nurse, I was directed to the operating area where anesthesia in the form of twilight sleep was commenced. I saw lights and medical equipment above and was aware of the reassuring presence of the doctor, but only briefly. The next thing I recall, I was in another area and the surgery was complete. The doctor returned to provide a DVD of my operation and a repeat of instructions. On the way to the car, the young man pushing the wheelchair made a last minute check to see if I was aware of identity, circumstances and location and we were on the way home. My spouse being at the wheel caused me far more anxiety than the surgery. A few weeks later, the procedure was repeated for the other eye and I am now able to see with no further necessity for the glasses I had used for decades. Millions of people throughout the world have been saved from blindness by modern cataract surgery. I am happy to be counted among them.