DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My doctor gave me some very unsettling news. He says I have cataracts in both eyes. I haven’t been able to sleep since he told me. My aunt was blind later in life. I don’t know the cause, but I do know that life was very tough for her.

I haven’t contacted the ophthalmologist my doctor referred me to. I’m too scared. How are cataracts treated? How long is recuperation? — S.M.

ANSWER: If a doctor examined the eyes of most people over 60, the doctor would tell them they have the beginning of a cataract. Do you know what a cataract is? Right behind the pupil is the eye’s lens, a small, oval-shaped, perfectly clear structure. The lens focuses light on the retina in the back of the eye, so we get a clear picture of what we see.

A cataract is a smudge in the lens. Proteins in the lens have stuck to each other to produce a stain in the lens like a thumbprint on the lens of glasses. Your cataract must not be large. You have no complaints of it interfering with your vision. Most cataracts result from aging. Smoking, alcohol excess, constant exposure to sunlight and long-term use of high doses of cortisone drugs also contribute to cataract formation.

The evolution of your cataract to one that blurs vision is unpredictable. The process is painless. Difficulty seeing at night and difficulty reading fine print are early symptoms of cataracts affecting vision.

Treatment is close to miraculous. When the lens smudge greatly affects vision, the eye doctor removes the lens and replaces it with a lens made of plastic or silicone. Cataract removal is done as an outpatient. You can be up and about by the evening of surgery or the following day. You’ll be astounded at the minimum inconvenience of the procedure and with the vision that results from it.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: For some reason, I have gotten into the habit of checking my pulse when I walk or when I sit. While I watch TV, my pulse is about 100. Isn’t that way too fast? — C.K.

ANSWER: Pulse and heartbeat are one and the same. When the heart ejects blood, a pressure pulse is created in the all the body’s arteries. You can feel the pulse beat in the neck, the ankle or the thumb side of the wrist.

A normal pulse rate (heartbeat) is 60 to 100 times a minute. Your 100 is normal, but at the high end of normal.

Since you have no symptoms, you don’t have to rush to see a doctor. But at your next exam, mention your high pulse rate. The doctor can judge if conditions that lead to a fast heartbeat need to be investigated. An overactive thyroid gland and anemia are two such conditions.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475.

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