Objective: To estimate the prevalence of cataract, the rate of cataract surgical coverage rate,and the rate of cataract-blindness social burden among older adults aged 50 years or above in Qidong City of Jiangsu Province, China, in 2006.
Methods: Cluster sampling was used in randomly selected 5662 individuals aged 50 years or above in 16 clusters in Qidong City. 5141 individuals received visual acuity and eye examination from September to December 2006. Lens and cataract operation status were evaluated by slit lamp. Multiple logistic regression analysis was employed to analyzed the prevalence of cataract, cataract surgical coverage rate, cataract blindness social burden rate and outcomes of surgery among different ages, sex and educational background.
Results: In 5141 individuals, 1098 cases of cataract were found, the prevalence of cataract was 21.35% among adults aged 50 or above. The prevalence of cataract was higher in the aged, female, illiterate persons (P < 0.01). In 89 eyes with cataract surgery, 25.84% and 42.70% of eyes were performed by the modern extra-capsular surgery and Phacoemulsification respectively. The rate of intraocular lens implantation was 69. 66%. Post-operative presenting and best corrected visual acuity more than 0.7 was 24.70% and 48.31% of operated eyes respectively. The main causes of the post-operated eyes with worse visual acuity were retinal disorders post-capsular opacity and glaucoma. The cataract surgical coverage rate was 37.96%, and the cataract blindness social burden rate was 2.10%. The cataract blindness social burden rate was higher in the aged persons (P < 0.01).
Conclusions: Cataract is the most common and important eye disease that may lead into blindness and severe visual impairment among older adults aged 50 years or above. The cataract surgical coverage rate is not so high in Qidong City, and even lower in the aged persons. The first important task in blindness prevention still is the elimination of cataract blindness. The visual outcomes of the cataract surgery should be further improved in the future.