Monocular patients present a special situation that can differ from a routine case in a patient with two eyes. We always want to achieve clean draping, a balanced incision, and a great capsulorhexis, but how should we adjust the refractive outcome? What are the appropriate IOL options? What about medications? There are some important issues that are discussed in this video.
Click to learn about special considerations for monocular patients having cataract surgery:
Dear Dr. Devgan, thank you again for sharing this video with you thoughts during the proces of doing surgery on a monocular patient.
You say that you don’t patch the eye but instead you gave him a sunglass. Obvious it is not to patch the eye if you have a monocular patient, I totally agree.
I wonder what you use in your routine cases: do you patch the eye or not. If yes what are your considerations for patching the eye? What is the evidence in using a patch after uncomplicated cataract surgery?
I do not regularly use an eye patch after routine cataract surgery. Just sunglasses. Doing it this way for thousands of surgeries over many years. Very safe.
Thank you for your answer, good to know that it is very safe to use sunglasses, the number of cases is impressive!
I am looking at needing cataract surgery and have vision in only one eye. Of course the cataract is in the one eye that works. I have diabetic retinopathy, mild (not enough to treat) edema and optic disc drusen. My A1C is 6.7 most recently, I am active both running and cycling. Is it more risky for me to consider cataract surgery than a patient without these additional complications? I have been diabetic for 43 years and I am 50 years old. I am nervous to have the eye that works operated on for obvious reasons. Will the recovery be different? Longer? Thank you