Purposes: Evaluate the outcome of cataract surgery in Clinic of Ophthalmology, Kaunas University of Medicine (COKUM) and to compare it with the outcome of the European Cataract Outcome Study Group (ECOSG) data.
Methods: The study was started on the 1st of October, 2000 and ended on the 30th April, 2001 on the basis of the protocol of the European Cataract Outcome Study Group. Every patient at each participating unit having surgery during the first study month was evaluated. The study was closed 6 months after surgery.
Results: The study enroled 3944 patients, out of them 361 was from COKUM. The mean induced astigmatism was 0.86+/-0.21 D in COKUM and 0.63+/-0.23 D in ECOSG. The visual acuity of the operated eye was 0.3 or lower in 28.1 percent of patients, 0.4-0.7 in 31.7 percent and 0.8 or higher in 40.2 percent of COKUM patients in the whole study group percentages were 11.8, 27.6 and 60.6, respectively. 44.3 percent of COKUM patients; underwent phacoemulsiphication, while among ECOSG this procedure was the most common (91.8 percent). The number of complications during surgery was 5.5 percent of all cases in COKUM while in European countries it was 3.7 percent.
Conclusion: Cataract surgery data collected from 39 units in 18 European countries allowed participants to compare their performance with that of colleagues in an anonymous manner. This study is also an indicator of cataract surgery development in COKUM and in Lithuania.