Can a retina examination be done if there is a cataract?
JAN 25, 2023
Question:
Can a retina examination be done if there is a cataract?
Answer:
A cataract, or cloudy lens, usually obstructs the patient’s vision, but as it sits in front of the retina, it can also obstruct your ophthalmologist’s view during a retinal exam. The more advanced the cataract is, the more limited the retinal examination will be and the less your ophthalmologist can see during a regular eye exam.
There are other imaging tools to perform a retinal exam on a patient with a cataract, such as OCT (optical coherence tomography) imaging and ocular ultrasound. They may or may not be necessary depending on how advanced the cataract is, and your ophthalmologist will let you know following your dilated eye exam.