Turkish Journal of Geriatrics 2011 , Vol 14, Issue 3
OUTCOMES OF CATARACT SURGERY IN 90-YEAR-OLD OR OLDER PATIENTS
Muhammed Necati DEMİR, Fatma Gül Yılmaz ÇINAR, Uğur ACAR, Firdevs ÖRNEK
S.B. Ankara Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi 2. Göz Kliniği ANKARA Introduction: In this paper, assessment of the surgical outcomes of cataract surgery in 90- year-old or older patients were aimed.

Materials and Method: Thirty-one eyes of 31 patients who underwent cataract extraction in 2001-2008 were retrospectively analyzed. Demographic data, the type of cataract, ocular-comorbidity, surgical-anaesthetic techniques, intraocular lens position, anterior-posterior segment examination findings, complications, and visual acuity (VA) were evaluated. Statistical analyses were performed using paired t-test.

Results: The average age of the patients was 92.17 (90-101) years. The most common ocular comorbidities were age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma. Preoperative VA was logMAR1 or less in 26 (83.87%) patients and logMAR1.7 or less in 14 patients (45.16%). Three months after surgery, 17 eyes (54,8%) had ?0.5 VA. VA improved in 28 eyes (90%) and remained same in 3 eyes (9.67%). A mean improvement of logMAR1.01 was achieved after surgery (p<0.001). logMAR1.25 and logMAR0.82 were achieved in patients with no ocular-comorbidity and with AMD, respectively. The most frequent complications during the operations were vitreous loss with zonular dehiscence (4 patients) and posterior capsule rupture (1 patient).

Conclusion: Cataract surgery is very succesful in very elderly patients and increases the VA and quality of life. AMD and glaucoma might restrict the expected VA in these patients. Keywords : Aged, 80 and Over; Catararct; Macular Degeneration