Both Fuchs’ dystrophy and cataracts can cause cloudy vision among other symptoms.

They are different conditions, but they may sometimes occur together.

Read on to learn what the difference is and how doctors treat them.

Cataracts happen when proteins in your eye lens start to break down and clump together. This usually happens in older adults. The proteins that have broken down are what cause the cloudy vision.

You can often manage some symptoms of cataracts with lifestyle measures, but typically, you’ll need surgery as the cataracts progress and begin to affect your daily life more significantly. Surgery replaces the lens with an artificial one. You can usually have this surgery and go home the same day without needing to stay in the hospital.

Cataract surgery is considered safe with a high success rate.

Fuchs’ dystrophy affects the cornea of your eye and causes cells to slowly die off, which leads to fluid building up. This fluid is what can cause cloudy vision seen in this disease.

You may not have symptoms during the early stages of Fuchs’ dystrophy, but people typically notice blurred vision early in the morning that may clear up as the day goes on.

As the condition progresses, this blurriness may last all day, and you might develop small blisters in the cornea, a gritty feeling in your eye, and light sensitivity.

Surgery to correct Fuchs’ dystrophy involves removing the cornea and replacing it. This is known as a corneal transplant.

If you have Fuch’s dystrophy and cataracts, it’s important to know that cataract surgery can worsen Fuch’s.

If you have Fuch’s, your doctor may want to use BSS plus as the irrigating solution. This solution gives your cornea greater protection than standard solutions. A doctor may also recommend laser-assisted cataract surgery, which allows the surgeon to use less phaco energy.

If you have only mild Fuch’s and cataracts, your doctor may advise cataract surgery first to see if your symptoms improve. They might then suggest a corneal transplant if your cornea is still cloudy after this surgery.

In other cases, your doctor will suggest you have both cataract surgery and corneal surgery. You may have these surgeries on the same day or separately.