Ideally, your vision should steadily improve or at least stay stable in the days after cataract surgery. If you notice your vision getting worse instead of better, that’s not typical and warrants prompt attention. First, consider any simple causes: sometimes the eye can get more swollen on day 2 than day 1 (corneal edema can peak about 24-48h then improve) – this could cause temporary blur that then clears up. But if at any point your vision was clear and is now significantly blurrier, or was improving then took a downturn, do not ignore it. Possible causes of late-onset blurriness: Increased inflammation or edema – maybe you missed drops, and the eye got more inflamed; pressure spike – high intraocular pressure can blur vision; early onset PCO (unlikely so soon, but a cloudy posterior capsule can blur vision later on); Cystoid macular edema (CME) – typically a few weeks out, fluid in retina can cause blurriness especially in central vision. Or more urgently, infection or retinal detachment as discussed, which drastically worsens vision. What to do: Call your ophthalmologist’s office right away if you experience a notable vision decrease. They will likely have you come in the same day for an exam. If it’s something like CME (which usually happens around 3-6 weeks post-op and causes blurred central vision), they might prescribe additional anti-inflammatory treatment (like stronger steroid drops or NSAIDs, or even an injection) and it usually resolves over time. If it’s posterior capsule opacification (happens months or years later mostly), the fix is a quick laser (YAG capsulotomy) to clear it up. The key point: don’t wait to see if it magically gets better if it’s clearly getting worse. Eyes are pretty stable by a week or two out. A slight dip in vision accompanied by a gritty feeling might just be dryness – you can try tears first. But a serious dip, or blur with pain, etc., needs evaluation. If after hours or you can’t reach your surgeon, many practices have an emergency line or you can go to an eye ER if vision is severely down (like you can’t see much). Always err on side of caution. Often, the earlier a problem is addressed, the easier it is to fix. For example, CME caught early responds to drops well, infection caught early can be treated with better outcomes, a detachment caught early can be surgically fixed before the macula detaches (preserving vision). After cataract surgery, you get used to things improving, so if you feel you’re sliding backward, trust that instinct and get it checked.