What’s up with people wearing those big sunglasses after cataract surgery?

The main reason is for protection - physical protection to assure nothing hits the eye immediately after surgery, and protection from sunlight and other bright lights.

We want to protect the eye from getting hit physically because there is a small incision in the eyeball through which the surgeon has removed the cataract and inserted a new clear lens. In most modern cataract surgeries that incision is very small - about one-tenth of an inch in most cases. The vast majority of surgeons do not stitch the incision closed at the end of surgery. The incision is made with a bevel or flap so that the internal eye pressure pushes the incision closed.

The incision does have some risk of opening, especially if you were to provide direct pressure on the eyeball. Therefore, immediately after surgery we want you to be careful and make sure that you or any outside force doesn’t put direct pressure on the eye. The...

Ocular allergies are among the most common eye conditions to hit people of all ages.

Though typically worse in the seasons of Spring and Summer, some people suffer with allergies all year. This is especially true for people who have allergies to pet dander, mold, dust mites, and other common allergens that tend to linger throughout the year.

The hallmark sign of ocular allergies is itching.

While itching can be a symptom of other eye conditions, the likelihood that there is at least some allergy component to the condition is quite high. This seems to be particularly true when the itching occurs mainly in the inner corner of the eyes. This signals that the condition is allergy-related, whereas itching along the eyelid margin suggests other conditions.

Allergy itching is usually accompanied by redness, tearing, and string-like mucus discharge from the eye. When accompanied by rhinitis, sinusitis, and sneezing, people can truly suffer from their allergies - especially as...