Problem Post Cataract Surgery

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Paul G

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Info about this, especially from any eye doctors, would be appreciated.

Recently I had cataract surgery. The cataracts weren't very advanced, and my vision was about 20/30 uncorrected, but I wanted to get ahead of things and optimize my vision for however remaining good shooting years I may have. It's been five weeks on my master eye, and overall I don't think my vision is as good as it was before surgery. Both my opthamologist and optometrist say the lenses look fine, healed well and clear and in proper place. They did diagnose macular edema which wasn't evident pre-surgery. For club rimfire benchrest I use a Weaver 24X with 1/8" dot. I am seeing a shadow or secondary image of the dot and vertical crosshair. I am seeing the same thing with a 20X Lyman Super Targetspot with FCH. It is less evident with a 25X STS which is not currently on a rifle.

Neither of my doctors seem to know much about shooting, or care. They seem to focus on clinical exam and refraction, not practical functions that are important to me.

The edema is being treated with steroid and NSAID eye drops for now, and distance vision is 20/20 with new glasses.

I am perplexed to say the least. Any info or guidance would be appreciated.
 
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Have patience I had issues right after I had my cataract surgery. I was seeing 2 front sights and looking through a rifle scope was egg shaped field of view time took care of the problems
 
I suspect that you & your specialists are just concentrating on different elements of the same situation & further, that you perhaps misremember how it was before the operation. If you do a search, you'll find a consensus that a macular edema causes double vision issues, as you have confirmed.

Best of luck with their treatment.
 
Good they caught the ME, before it got out of hand. I developed Wet Stage ME, and now have to have monthly injection in the eye. As it's the only one I have left, I really have to be careful. Take it eye and don't rush getting back to shooting.
 
Eyes.......

At 88yrs, I am blind in the left eye and have a slight cataract forming in the right eye. My doctor/surgeon won't do anything now except drops. When I shoot, the red dot of my Aimpoint 2000 appears "smughed" or distorted. This is still better for me than the iron sights. Please give yourself a chance to heal. It may take a few months.

Wish you well,
Ted.
 
Just for the heck of it, loosen the back end of the scope and re-focus your crosshair. That double image you are getting could very likely need a simple adjustment to remove.

This is best done against a plain background... the sky works well. This adjustment is kinda persnickety. You will have it right when you have a single image, when the vertical and horizonal crosshairs are equally black and the edges are very sharp. Don't settle for one really black crosshair and one a little faded.

When you tighten the rear lens back up, be careful... sometimes you can change the focus slightly by snugging it up. There has to be play, a little slop, or the elements would not move. You might have to compensate for that.

This is pretty easy when you've done it a few dozen times.
 
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My eyesight is poor but I can see well with glasses and I don't have the problem you have. That said, I've shot borrowed rifles in competition that had serious focus problems for my eyes. I didn't want to change the adjustments on a borrowed rifle so I just shot them as is. If you can make out the target, you can do it quite well if nothing changes while shooting. What I'm saying here is that it doesn't have to be clear....it just has to be consistent. For sure, I don't know what I'm talking about but maybe you can find a way to do it with the scope not being as clear as you would like.
 
I was talking to Dennis Wagner at the Nationals at Phoenix last year. Dennis had cataract surgery and after he first had it, he was seeing two crosshairs through his scope. It took several months I guess for his eyes to heal from the surgery, but it did and the two crosshairs he was seeing went away to just the one he needed to see.
 
3 months minium

My ophthalmologists told me after having laser surgery that 3 months minimum is required before we will know if you need any more. According to my physician a BG haemoglobin test will show up the last 3 months of BG variation. A lot of bodily functions occur on a 3 month cycle. The treatment for the ME will take longer and may need a more aggressive treatment but they start off with less to begin with.
 
Paul G said:
Info about this, especially from any eye doctors, would be appreciated.

"They did diagnose macular edema which wasn't evident pre-surgery.

Neither of my doctors seem to know much about shooting, or care. They seem to focus on clinical exam and refraction, not practical functions that are important to me.

The edema is being treated with steroid and NSAID eye drops for now, and distance vision is 20/20 with new glasses.

I am perplexed to say the least. Any info or guidance would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

The macular edema you have, is called CME (Cystic Macular Edema) and is caused by the drop in vitrious (fluid) pressure during the lens exchange... so there would be no edema before the surgery.

CME is a common "complication" of this kind of surgery, so it is surprising that neither of your professionals are aware of it. It should clear up 90% in 3 to 6 months.
 
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The edema can cause all sorts of visual disturbances.

It alters the precise alignment of the components of the eye.

It can be annoying but as suggested it needs more time.

The body will add fluid to the eye compartments until the pressure is 'normal' but it is a slow process.
 
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