Sixty-five patients less than 10 years of age had cataract surgery on 99 eyes. The visual prognosis depended on the cataract type and whether the treatment was undertaken during the critical period for development of the fixation reflex. All patients received the same surgical technique, aggressive optical correction, and occlusion therapy, if needed. Partial cataracts were the most frequent and the two largest groups were lamellar and axial. The visual outcome was excellent for the lamellar cataracts, whereas axial cataracts were the most amblyogenic. Obtaining a good visual result demanded an understanding of the complexities of amblyopia.