Cataract symptoms: What to look for

It is important to know the early signs and symptoms of cataracts which often cause a slow and steady decline in vision.

What is a cataract?

A cataract is a clouding of the normally transparent lens of the eye and is usually a consequence of getting older. Most age-related cataracts develop slowly so you may not notice any problems with your vision until the cataract is fairly advanced.

In some rare cases or in people at high risk, cataracts may develop over several months.

Having regular eye examinations with your optometrist is the best way to determine if you have a cataract, and if you need an opinion from an eye specialist for possible removal.

What are the early symptoms of cataracts?

Cataracts can affect your vision in ways other than just making it blurry, and often these other symptoms are noticeable before blurred vision.

Glare sensitivity

Usually, the lens focuses light on the back of your eye (the retina) very precisely. When the lens becomes cloudy, it scatters some of the light in different directions. This scattered light creates glare and sensitivity to bright lights.

Faded colours

As the cataract forms, the lens becomes more yellow. This acts like a yellow filter. Because of this, the vibrancy and brightness of colours is diminished and results in colours that look faded with a yellow-sepia tinge.

Double vision

In the same way that a cloudy lens causes glare sensitivity, it may also result in double vision. The cloudy lens may split incoming light in two, instead of focusing it at a single point. This can produce double vision or a ghost-like image next to objects.

Halos around lights and problems with night vision

When light scatters, it may also produce a glow (halo) or starbursts around lights or bright objects. This is more obvious at night. Vision in dim light is much more difficult as not enough light is getting through to the retina.

The need to constantly clean your glasses or windscreen

As the cataract forms it creates a barrier to the amount of light passing to the retina. The lens in your eye can take on the appearance of frosted glass so you feel like you need to wipe your glasses to clear away this “film”.

Blurred vision

Blurred vision is often one of the last signs of a cataract. The changes in your lens increase over time with the lens becoming increasingly cloudy and brown/yellow and eventually causing a reduction in your visual acuity.

Initially you may end up with a new or changing prescription in your glasses after potentially many years of stability. Eventually new glasses will not improve your vision. It is usually at this stage that you maybe referred to an ophthalmologist for possible cataract surgery.