The challenge of cataract surgery
Planning, preparation and communication are essential, says Cynthia Bradford MD


Aidan Hanratty
Published: Friday, May 18, 2018
[caption id="attachment_6034" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Cynthia Bradford MD[/caption]
Ophthalmologists should try to keep routine cases routine through planning, preparation and communication while performing surgery, Cynthia Bradford MD told the Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO) Annual Conference in Kilkenny, Ireland
Dr Bradford, Professor of Ophthalmology at the Dean McGee Eye Institute, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma, USA, spoke about The Challenge of Cataract Surgery when she delivered the annual Mooney Lecture at the conference.
She was introduced by ICO President Dr Alison Blake, who gave a history of the Mooney family as well as reaching as far back as the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, which stated that if a physician operated on a man’s eye and cut it out, he would have both his hands cut off.
Dr Bradford drew from her own experience as both surgeon and teacher, addressing every point of cataract surgery from meeting patients and hearing their histories – personal and medical – to follow-up years later.
She also urged doctors to have fun while performing surgery. “Surgery, it’s almost like a game, you just have to keep up with it,” she told EuroTimes. “You’re watching for everything, trying to make every move as good as you can and allow the next step to be successful and you just start having fun doing it.”

Latest Articles
ESCRS Today 2025: Happy Anniversaries!
ESCRS celebrates milestones with pioneers in IOLs, LASIK, femtosecond lasers, and corneal transplantation.
ESCRS Today 2025: A Congress for Everyone
From YOs to families, the ESCRS Annual Meeting embraces full participation through inclusivity.
Beyond the Numbers
Empowering patient participation fosters continuous innovation in cataract surgery.
Thinking Beyond the Surgery Room
Practice management workshop focuses on financial operations and AI business applications.
Aid Cuts Threaten Global Eye Care Progress
USAID closure leads retreat in development assistance.
Supplement: ESCRS Clinical Trends Series: Presbyopia
Debate: FS-LASIK or KLEx for Hyperopia?
FS-LASIK has more of a track record, but KLEx offers advantages.
Four AI Applications Ready for Practice
Commercial offerings may save time, improve practice and research.
Perioperative Medication Regimens for Cataract Surgery
Randomised controlled clinical trial results provide evidence-based guidance.