Your journey, one step at a time

Patient journey: your cataract surgery step by step

From booking your appointment to the one-year check-up, your journey follows six steps: first contact, consultation, assessment, choice of implant, surgery, follow-up.

Book an appointment on Doctolib
+33 1 45 47 08 11

A cataract is the progressive clouding of the eye’s natural lens, and its only treatment is surgical. The procedure itself is short; the journey, however, begins in consultation and continues until the one-year check-up.

The 6 steps of your journey

1

First contact and booking your appointment

Everything starts with an appointment, booked online on Doctolib or by phone. The consultation can take place at the Cachan practice, at the Paris 13 practice, or at the Centre Ophtalmologique Sorbonne Saint-Michel (Paris 5th), where Dr Tourabaly also sees patients. Discomfort when driving at night or a new difficulty with reading are legitimate reasons to come in. Addresses and directions for the three locations →

2

Consultation and diagnosis

The diagnosis is made in consultation: your best-corrected visual acuity is measured, then your eye is examined at the slit lamp after the pupil has been dilated. The question is not only whether a cataract is present: what leads to surgery is how much it hampers your daily life, in driving, reading, work and independence. There is no “stage to wait for”. Cataract surgery in detail →

3

Preoperative assessment

The assessment brings together three tests: optical biometry (IOL Master), corneal topography and macular OCT. Biometry is used to calculate the power of your future implant. The assessment fits into a single visit of about 45 to 60 minutes. Topography detects astigmatism and makes it possible to plan a toric implant if needed. If you are seen at Paris 13, which has neither biometry nor corneal topography, the assessment is scheduled at Cachan or Paris 5th. The preoperative assessment, test by test →

4

Choosing the implant, and the quote

The implant permanently replaces the natural lens that has been removed, and its type determines the distances at which you will see clearly without glasses. There are four families: monofocal, toric, EDOF and multifocal. Tell me what you want to do without glasses: drive, work on a screen, read. The implant is chosen from there, within the limits of what your eye allows. The monofocal implant is covered by the French national health insurance (Assurance Maladie), with no extra charge for the implant; a quote is handed to you in consultation when the implant chosen leaves an amount for you to pay. Compare the implant families → · Fees and coverage →

5

The surgery

The operation takes place at the Clinique Sainte-Geneviève (Paris 14th), never at the practice. The clouded natural lens is removed through a micro-incision, then replaced with a flexible implant placed in the lens’s original capsule. The procedure takes about 15 to 30 minutes, under local anesthesia with light sedation, as day surgery. The anesthesia consultation, at the clinic, is part of the preparation. Surgery at the clinic →

6

Follow-up

Check-ups take place two days after surgery (written “J+2” in France), then at one month, then at one year, unless otherwise indicated or unless your situation calls for closer appointments. They are held at the practice where you are followed, not at the clinic. Eye drops are to be used for about one month, as set out in your prescription. Recovery after surgery in detail →

Which implant for my vision? The simulator

Preparing well for each appointment

What to plan for the consultation, the assessment and the day of surgery.

Before the first consultation

Bring your French health insurance card (carte Vitale), your supplementary health insurance (mutuelle) card, your current glasses and the list of your medications. Mention any anticoagulant, as well as alpha-blockers such as tamsulosin, which make pupil dilation more difficult. If you have had laser eye surgery (LASIK, PRK, SMILE), say so and bring the report: that operation changes the implant calculation. Your pupils will be dilated: do not drive for the following 3 to 4 hours and, if possible, come accompanied.

Before the preoperative assessment

You do not need to fast for the assessment; the tests are performed without contact with the eye and without pain. This is the step that prepares the choice of your implant, so come with an idea of your visual priorities: reading, screens, night driving. Your pupils will be dilated again: the same precautions apply for the journey home.

The day of surgery

On the morning of surgery, put in the pupil-dilating eye drops yourself, as set out in the prescription given to you at the assessment. You come having fasted: the precise instructions, along with those concerning your regular medications, are given to you at the anesthesia consultation. Allow 2 to 3 hours on site, from arrival to discharge. Have someone accompany you: you leave the clinic 30 to 60 minutes after the procedure, with a clear protective shield over the operated eye. Start the post-operative eye drops as soon as you get home. The shield must be worn at night for 7 days, so that you do not rub your eye while sleeping.

How long does the journey take?

Between the consultation and the surgery, the wait depends on operating room availability; you are told what it is at the consultation itself. This interval is when the preoperative assessment, the choice of implant and the anesthesia consultation take place. A cataract is not an emergency in the vast majority of cases; over time, however, the natural lens hardens, which can make the surgery more delicate.

If both eyes are affected, the second is generally operated on 1 to 2 weeks after the first; follow-up continues until the one-year check-up.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can I have my consultation in Paris and my surgery in Paris?
Yes. The consultation takes place at Cachan, at Paris 13 or at the Centre Ophtalmologique Sorbonne Saint-Michel (Paris 5th). Biometry and corneal topography are done at Cachan or Paris 5th, as Paris 13 does not have them. The surgery takes place at the Clinique Sainte-Geneviève (Paris 14th).
Are both eyes operated on the same day?
No, barring exceptions. They are operated on separately, generally 1 to 2 weeks apart. This interval makes it possible to confirm the recovery of the first eye and, where useful, to adjust the choice of implant for the second.
What should I do about my glasses between the two operations?
The final prescription is written one month after the operation on the second eye, once the refraction has stabilized; the first eye is rechecked during the second eye’s check-ups. In the meantime, ready-made magnifying reading glasses, sold in pharmacies or supermarkets, are usually enough to get by.
Am I entitled to sick leave and a medical transport voucher?
Yes, both can be issued to you: cataract surgery is a medical procedure covered by the French national health insurance (Assurance Maladie), unlike refractive surgery such as LASIK. The length of the sick leave is adapted to your occupation and discussed in consultation. The transport voucher is valid for the day of surgery only; it covers neither the anesthesia consultation nor the post-operative check-ups.
When can I drive again?
Not before the check-up two days after surgery (J+2), where your visual acuity is measured. The threshold is set by regulation: for the French category B (car) driver’s license, the French ministerial order of March 28, 2022 requires binocular visual acuity of at least 5/10 (equivalent to 20/40 or 6/12); if one of the two eyes sees less than 1/10 (20/200 or 6/60), the other must reach at least 5/10.
Who should I call if there is a problem after surgery?
Call the practice at +33 1 45 47 08 11. If you cannot reach it, go to an eye emergency department. Do not delay in case of severe pain not relieved by paracetamol (acetaminophen), a sudden drop in vision, a very red eye with discharge, or the appearance of a dark veil, flashes of light or a shower of floaters. Discomfort that gets worse after it had started to improve should also prompt a call.

Find out more

Book an appointment on Doctolib

Cachan practice · Tel. +33 1 45 47 08 11

Sources

  • French ministerial order (arrêté) of March 28, 2022 on medical fitness to drive (driver’s license). Légifrance.
  • American Academy of Ophthalmology. Cataract in the Adult Eye Preferred Practice Pattern. AAO, 2021.

This page is for information purposes. It does not replace a consultation: only a personalized evaluation determines whether cataract surgery is indicated, and with which implant. Like any operation, cataract surgery carries risks, which are explained before your consent is obtained.