CHAPTER 18 Postoperative care
Modern cataract surgery has become a triumph of logistics over inconvenience. The postoperative period has become short but is nevertheless important. Distinct from the days of spending 6 weeks in bed with sand-bags supporting the head because there were no sutures used, many units do not review the patient at all and some only once in the post-surgical period. This has been facilitated by the development of secure wounds, drugs which prevent infection and inflammation, and rapid lines of communication if problems do occur. Several studies have shown no worsening of outcomes1,2.
Preparations for the postoperative period begin intraoperatively with wound stromal hydration as this has been shown to increase wound stability in the first hour postoperatively3.
