Speciality Clinics

Overview

Cataract is the leading cause of blindness in the world. Even though vision lost due to cataract can be restored through a simple and minor procedure, it remains as one of the significant causes of preventable blindness. The Cataract and IOL Department at Aravind is equipped to treat all kinds of cataracts. Expert doctors, well trained support staff and state-of-the-art diagnostics ensure the best possible care to patients.  Over 3 lakh cataract surgeries are performed annually at Aravind Eye Hospitals.

Cataract services are available at Madurai, Chennai, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore, Pondicherry, Salem, Tirupati, Theni, Dindigul, Tuticorin, Udumalpet, Tirupur

Diagnosis & Treatment

All types of cataract surgeries –Phacoemulsification, Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery, Refractive cataract surgery, Femtosecond laser assisted cataract surgery and surgery on complicated cataracts – are performed by competent surgeons. The state-of-the-art facilities include:

  • Femtosecond laser assisted surgeries for all grades of normal and complicated cataracts.
  • High end phacoemulsification system which enables phacoemulsification (Micro incision sutureless surgery) under topical anesthesia
  • Microscopes which enable excellent visibility and enhance margin of safety.
  • Use of high quality IOLs (manufactured in-house and outsourced from multinational companies) aids to improve postoperative vision and treat refractive conditions like high myopia, presbyopia and astigmatism.
  • Advanced surgical instruments which aid in precision during surgery
  • Toric planners (Verion) for precise implantation of Toric IOLs
  • Zeiss Visulas YAG III plus laser to treat posterior capsular opacification occurring after cataract surgery
  • Latest generation optical biometers to accurately calculate intra ocular lens powers in normal eyes and in eyes with pre-existing conditions such as high myopia
  • Aberrometers to reassess the biometry with precision, and calculate higher order aberrations.
  • Specular microscope and pachymeter which allows to select the correct surgical options for patients
  • Digital slit lamp photography unit
  • Contrast sensitivity testing equipment

Our Doctors

ARAVIND – MADURAI
Chief
Dr. Madhu Shekhar, MS
Medical Consultants
Dr. Aruna Pai, MS
Dr. Gomathi Ramya, DO
Dr. R. Sankarananthan, MS
ARAVIND – TIRUNELVELI
Chief
Dr. Shivakumar Chandrashekharan, MS
Medical Consultants
Dr. V.R. Vivekanandan, MS
Dr. M. Sherin Haroon, MS
Dr. Abhijith, MS
Dr. Kavya, MS, DO
Dr. Sneha Sourabha, DNB
CATARACT SERVICES
Chief
Dr. Kalpana Narendran, DO, DNB
Medical Consultants
Dr. Anita Mohanan, MS
Dr. P. Vivekanand, DO, DNB
Dr. V. Sangeetha, DO
Dr. Atul Madhavsa Gujarathi, MS
ARAVIND – PONDICHERRY
Medical Consultants
Dr. Merlin Benzy, MS
ARAVIND – CHENNAI
Chief
Dr. Haripriya Aravind, MS
ARAVIND – SALEM
Chief
Dr. B. Manohar Babu, MS
Medical Consultants
Dr. R. Uma, MS
ARAVIND – TIRUPATI
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Ashok Vardhan, DO, DNB
Medical Consultants
Dr. Preethi Mohanty, MS, DNB
ARAVIND – THENI
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Dipankar Datta, DO, DNB, MNAMS (Oph)
Medical Consultants
Dr. Hema, MS
Dr. J. Ashok, MS
Dr. K. Dhanya, DO
ARAVIND – COIMBATORE CITY CENTRE
Medical Consultants
Dr. Manju Vinythera, DNB
Dr. Rohan Anand Daniel, DO, DNB
ARAVIND – DINDIGUL
Medical Consultants
Dr. P. Nanda Kishore, MS
ARAVIND – TIRUPUR
Medical Consultants
ARAVIND – UDUMALPET
Medical Consultants
Dr. Jebinth Brayan, MS
ARAVIND – TUTICORIN
Medical Consultants
Dr. G. Anitha, DO, DNB

Our Research

The department is involved in various research activities both basic as well as clinical. Clinical trials for new drugs are also being conducted in the department.

On-going research:

  • The natural history of IOL in eyes with exfoliation syndrome
  • Visual performance comparison between phacoemulsification and manual small incision cataract surgery in eyes with senile cataract: a prospective randomised clinical trial
  • Prostaglandin level estimation in phacoemulsification and Femtosecond laser assisted cataract surgery with and without NSAID and correlation with postoperative inflammation and cystoid macular edema
  • Visual Outcomes of SMART SICS
  • Multicentre, single arm, observational post market clinical follow-up evaluation of posterior capsular opacification, intraocular lens  glistening and visual outcome in patients implanted with hoya vivinextm isert® IOL in routine clinical practice
  • Surgical outcome comparison of miniCAP Vs Phacoemulsification: A Randomised controlled trial
  • To compare the stability of Iris fixated IOL between  3 piece PMMA  and single piece IOL with modified haptics
  • A prospective, multicentric, randomized controlled, study on long term outcomes of Phacoemulsification with Intraocular lens implantation in pseudo exfoliation syndrome patients
  • A prospective, non-randomized, single arm, open label Study to evaluate the efficacy of multifocal intraocular lenses with patients having cataract in both eyes
  • Visual performance comparison between phacoemulsification and manual small incision cataract surgery in eyes with senile  cataract: A prospective randomised clinical trial
  • Determining the quantitative and qualitative effects of pre and per-operative music listening on a patient’s experience of cataract surgery
  • Complications and visual outcomes in miniCAP and phacoemulsification cataract surgeries performed by trainee ophthalmologists: A Multicentre randomised controlled trial
  • Cost benefit analysis for patients undergoing femtosecond laser assisted cataract surgery and conventional phacoemulsification with aspheric IOLs in both eyes
  • Assessing the clinical outcome of femtosecond assissted laser surgery versus clear corneal phacoemulsification in three groups of pre-operative astigmatism: A retrospective study

Major Publications

Training

State-of-the-art infrastructure and training facilities like Wetlab and EYEsi surgical simulator attract ophthalmologists from around the world to come and learn at Aravind. The training programmes include long and short term courses and a customized training program for US Residents.

Long Term Ophthalmology Fellowship

Fellowship in Anterior Segment / Intraocular Lens Surgery 

Available at Aravind Eye Hospitals in Madurai, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore, Pondicherry, Chennai, Tirupati

Short Term Clinical Courses

Small Incision Cataract Surgery 

Available at Aravind Eye Hospitals in Madurai, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore, Pondicherry

Phacoemulsification 

Available at Aravind Eye Hospitals in Madurai, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore, Pondicherry

Cataract is the leading cause of blindness in the world. Even though vision lost due to cataract can be restored through a simple and minor procedure, it remains as one of the significant causes of preventable blindness. The Cataract and IOL Department at Aravind is equipped to treat all kinds of cataracts. Expert doctors, well trained support staff and state-of-the-art diagnostics ensure the best possible care to patients.  Over 3 lakh cataract surgeries are performed annually at Aravind Eye Hospitals.

Cataract services are available at Madurai, Chennai, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore, Pondicherry, Salem, Tirupati, Theni, Dindigul, Tuticorin, Udumalpet, Tirupur