In my ophthalmology training, patient complaints of “floaters and vitreous veils” were dismissed rather quickly as unimportant and likely to go away on their own. But it was not a very common complaint after cataract/IOL surgery then, probably because vision had to be really bad before surgery was done.
Cataract/IOL surgery is performed at much earlier ages and with less degree of visual impairment than it was 30+ years ago. And with the advent of refractive (eliminating glasses afterwards) benefits from such surgery, people are naturally expecting a lot more than was once the case. So it has been a little surprising to hear how complaints such as yours have become increasingly common in post-cataract surgery patients. It seems that when a patient compares his or her vision after surgery to what it was prior to it, these vitreous veils and floaters now figure more prominently than was once the case. But the surgery does not cause vitreous floaters or veils. You can just see them better now! And of course patient expectations rise just as fast as medical technology advances.
Typically, these vitreous floaters and veils go away with time. This is partly from gravity slowly causing them to sink out of your line of sight and partly because your brain re-programs itself to filter them out of your awareness. If, after a suitable period of time (usually about 6 months or longer) they are still a significant impediment to your vision, they can be removed surgically with a pars plana vitrectomy (PPV). But this is another operation -and while rather quick and safe, is not exempt from possible complications no matter how rare.
_Written by J. Trevor Woodhams, M.D. – Chief of Surgery, Woodhams Eye Clinic