28 August 2026
Lens replacement now, or wait for the cataract?
The same operation is available now, electively, or later, as a cataract. The arguments run both ways, and the honest version does not resolve them for you.
Articles
Written and clinically reviewed by Ms Jiang.
Stock photograph — https://www.pexels.com/photo/7728915/
21 August 2026
The risks of lens surgery, set out plainly
Consent means understanding what can go wrong, set out honestly and without invented percentages — from the common and self-limiting to the rare and serious.
14 August 2026
The measurements taken before lens surgery, and why they matter more than the surgery
The twenty-minute operation is highly standardised; the result is largely decided beforehand, by measurements most patients never see explained.
7 August 2026
Driving after eye surgery: the standard you have to meet
The legal standard for driving is set by DVLA, not by a surgeon, and it does not wait for a fixed number of days after surgery. What actually decides when you can get back behind the wheel.
31 July 2026
When a surgeon tells you no
The most useful outcome of a consultation is sometimes not a booked operation. Here are the real reasons an assessment ends without surgery, and what they mean.
24 July 2026
Astigmatism: what it is, and the three ways of correcting it
Astigmatism smears vision at every distance rather than blurring one. It is very common, is not a disease, and is corrected by laser, a toric lens, or small relaxing incisions.
17 July 2026
Dry eye after laser and lens surgery: why it happens and how long it lasts
Dry eye after laser or lens surgery is common, expected, and the part of recovery people are told least about. Here is why it happens, how long it lasts, and what treats it.
10 July 2026
Monovision and blended vision: reading without reading glasses
One eye for distance, one for near, and the brain chooses between them. This is one of the few decisions in eye surgery you can trial with contact lenses before committing to it.
3 July 2026
The “second cataract”, and what a YAG laser actually does
Vision hazing over again after cataract surgery is not the cataract coming back — it cannot. Here is what has actually happened, and what a YAG capsulotomy involves.
26 June 2026
Glare, haloes and night driving: what surgery can and cannot fix
Glare at night has at least five distinct causes, only some of which an operation treats. The same complaint needs a diagnosis before it needs a procedure.
19 June 2026
Does private medical insurance cover eye surgery?
Usually, for a cataract. Rarely, for correcting glasses alone. The mechanics of pre-authorisation, fee assurance and excess matter more than either answer on its own.
18 June 2026
Cataract or presbyopia? Why the difference matters
Both make reading harder in your fifties, and they are frequently confused. The distinction changes what treatment makes sense — and whether your insurer will pay for it.
5 June 2026
NHS or private cataract surgery: what actually differs
The operation is the same operation, wherever it happens. What actually differs is the threshold for being offered it, the lens on offer, and who sees you throughout.
29 May 2026
What a private cataract surgery quote should actually contain
No two private quotes cover the same things. This is what should be itemised before any figure is compared, and the questions worth asking about what is not.
22 May 2026
Am I too old for laser eye surgery?
There is rarely a fixed age limit for laser eye surgery, but there is a point where it stops being the operation that makes sense. Here is what actually decides it.
15 May 2026
LASIK, LASEK or PRK: which laser procedure, and why it is not your choice alone
All three use the same laser to reshape the cornea. The difference is how the surface is handled, and the eye itself usually decides which is possible.
8 May 2026
Monofocal, multifocal or extended depth of focus: how lens implants differ
Each lens implant trades one kind of vision for another. What monofocal, multifocal, trifocal and EDOF designs each give up is a better starting point than what they promise.
2 May 2026
Questions worth asking any private eye surgeon
Private eye surgery is marketed hard, and the glossiest brochure is not the best guide. Here are the questions that actually separate one provider from another.
14 March 2026
What recovery after lens surgery is really like
A day-by-day account of the first six weeks, including the parts people find surprising — and the two things that most often go wrong.
22 January 2026
Floaters: when to worry and when not to
Most floaters are harmless. A small number are the first sign of a retinal tear, and the difference between the two comes down to one word: sudden.