FRIMLEY Park Hospital has become the first NHS hospital in the country to use revolutionary new laser technology for cataracts treatment.

The ‘femtosecond’ laser will now be used to carry out the 2,400 cataract operations patients undergo every year at Frimley Park, which equates to 80 per cent of all cataract removals at the hospital.

The new technology will assist with the first part of cataract operations, with the second part still done by a surgeon in the usual way in the operating theatre.

The laser uses tiny bursts of energy to carry out extremely accurate micro-surgery without the need for knives, needles or general anaesthetics. The laser then cuts a precise circular opening in the lens capsule and divides the cataract into small pieces.

The second half of the cataract operation with cataract fragment removal and intraocular lens implantation is then carried out by the surgeon as usual procedure.

Eye surgeon Thomas Poole says the precision of the laser will result in better outcomes for patients and reduce the risk of complications.

It will also mean faster surgery, so the hospital will be able to treat more patients, adding: “We really believe this is the future of cataract surgery and I’m delighted that we are able to offer it to the great majority of our NHS patients at Frimley.”

The first patient to be treated with the new technology at the hospital was Freda Thomson, from Alton, with Mr Poole’s colleagues observing the procedure.

With cataracts the most common cause of vision loss in people over 40, demand for cataract surgery has soared and cataract replacement now the most common type of surgery carried out in the UK.

Mr Poole concluded: “We are really excited about being able to use this technology to offer our patients great outcomes, especially for such a common procedure.”