Queen has secret cataract op age 92
...but how long would she have had to wait for NHS surgery?
‘No fuss mentality’
THE Queen has secretly undergone eye surgery to remove a cataract at the age of 92.
She was admitted as a day patient to the private King edward VII hospital in London weeks after her husband, Prince Philip, had a hip replacement there.
The monarch’s successful operation took place in early May, shortly before Prince harry’s wedding.
her Majesty was in and out of the hospital in a few hours. her determination to get on with business as usual highlights her famous ‘no fuss’ mentality.
The news comes after she has been seen wearing sunglasses at a number of events in recent weeks, including the Royal Windsor horse Show and several Buckingham Palace garden parties.
Last night a palace spokesman said: ‘I can confirm that the Queen successfully underwent a short planned procedure to treat a cataract last month.’
Officials declined to comment further but it is believed details of the operation were not made public before now as it was considered to be a relatively ‘minor’ procedure. No adjustments were made to her diary as a result of the cataract.
Indeed, in the first six months of this year she has been 25 per cent busier than the same period last year.
Cataracts develop when the lens, a small transparent disc inside the eye, develops cloudy patches, most commonly as a result of ageing.
Over time these patches become bigger causing blurry, misty vision and – if left untreated – eventually blindness.
Surgery to remove and replace the affected lens with an artificial one is the most common surgical procedure carried out on the NHS. Around 390,000 take place each year in england.
The Queen Mother had an operation to remove a cataract from her left eye in 1995 when she was 95 but, unlike her daughter, she spent a night in hospital post-surgery.
By coincidence, the Queen has honoured her eye surgeon, Jonathan Jagger, in the Birthday honours list by making him a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. The award is the Queen’s personal gift. Mr Jagger, the Surgeon-Oculist to the Queen, specialises in cataract surgery and adult ophthalmology, but is not believed to have carried out her operation.
The Queen, who has just marked the 65th anniversary of her coronation, is renowned for her robust health.
She still rides her fell ponies at Windsor and walks most days, and over the years any illnesses have been remarkably few and far between.
She has recently called time on her overseas travels, handing over that part of her royal duties to the younger members of her family.
But she still has a busy diary, and in 2017 carried out 296 engagements.