BioMed Central
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@3=<wz< BMC Ophthalmology
e&7}N Za Research article Open Access
&aht K}u Comparison of age-specific cataract prevalence in two
6h*
bcb#C population-based surveys 6 years apart
Q-%=ZW Z Ava Grace Tan†, Jie Jin Wang*†, Elena Rochtchina† and Paul Mitchell†
.4)P=* Address: Centre for Vision Research, Westmead Millennium Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital,
O6 J<Lqgh Westmead, NSW, Australia
-Z&{$J Email: Ava Grace Tan -
ava_tan@wmi.usyd.edu.au; Jie Jin Wang* -
jiejin_wang@wmi.usyd.edu.au;
2Rp{]s$jo Elena Rochtchina -
elena_rochtchina@wmi.usyd.edu.au; Paul Mitchell -
paul_mitchell@wmi.usyd.edu.au g}j>;T * Corresponding author †Equal contributors
I8>1RXz Abstract
v2z/|sG Background: In this study, we aimed to compare age-specific cortical, nuclear and posterior
qq{N; C subcapsular (PSC) cataract prevalence in two surveys 6 years apart.
~
a&j4E Methods: The Blue Mountains Eye Study examined 3654 participants (82.4% of those eligible) in
(ZSSp1Rv cross-section I (1992–4) and 3509 participants (75.1% of survivors and 85.2% of newly eligible) in
lLf01sa4 cross-section II (1997–2000, 66.5% overlap with cross-section I). Cataract was assessed from lens
VDN]P3 photographs following the Wisconsin Cataract Grading System. Cortical cataract was defined if
Q9V4-MC9 cortical opacity comprised ≥ 5% of lens area. Nuclear cataract was defined if nuclear opacity ≥
~ +$><qj Wisconsin standard 4. PSC was defined if any present. Any cataract was defined to include persons
PKG
,4v = who had previous cataract surgery. Weighted kappa for inter-grader reliability was 0.82, 0.55 and
WSwmX3rn 0.82 for cortical, nuclear and PSC cataract, respectively. We assessed age-specific prevalence using
Jxp'.oo[ an interval of 5 years, so that participants within each age group were independent between the
,i.P= o two surveys.
]<= t Results: Age and gender distributions were similar between the two populations. The age-specific
^;_b!7* prevalence of cortical (23.8% in 1st, 23.7% in 2nd) and PSC cataract (6.3%, 6.0%) was similar. The
Xy<KvFy prevalence of nuclear cataract increased slightly from 18.7% to 23.9%. After age standardization,
@/iLC6QF the similar prevalence of cortical (23.8%, 23.5%) and PSC cataract (6.3%, 5.9%), and the increased
Ut =y`
]F prevalence of nuclear cataract (18.7%, 24.2%) remained.
XITQB|C??$ Conclusion: In two surveys of two population-based samples with similar age and gender
]x\wP7x distributions, we found a relatively stable cortical and PSC cataract prevalence over a 6-year period.
VG^-aR_F The increased prevalence of nuclear cataract deserves further study.
_Pal)re]U Background
de=T7,G# Age-related cataract is the leading cause of reversible visual
n]!H,Q1,T impairment in older persons [1-6]. In Australia, it is
UW3F) estimated that by the year 2021, the number of people
jnY4(B
affected by cataract will increase by 63%, due to population
w6 .HvH-@? aging [7]. Surgical intervention is an effective treatment
}J`Gm for cataract and normal vision (> 20/40) can usually
+\Q@7Lj be restored with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation.
{n'}S( Cataract surgery with IOL implantation is currently the
)M~5F,) most commonly performed, and is, arguably, the most
3u<2~!sR cost effective surgical procedure worldwide. Performance
E~ kmU{D Published: 20 April 2006
O(!'V~3 BMC Ophthalmology 2006, 6:17 doi:10.1186/1471-2415-6-17
.v{ty Received: 14 December 2005
+W`~bX+ Accepted: 20 April 2006
H2} i . This article is available from:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2415/6/17 $fKWB5p|() © 2006 Tan et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
gqG"t@Y+ This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0),
Aj_}B. which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
M=%p$
\x BMC Ophthalmology 2006, 6:17
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2415/6/17 2Xosj(H Page 2 of 7
Qi M>59[ (page number not for citation purposes)
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'6T
of this surgical procedure has been continuously increasing
G>j/d7 in the last two decades. Data from the Australian
+;T%7j"wz Health Insurance Commission has shown a steady
a%kj)ah increase in Medicare claims for cataract surgery [8]. A 2.6-
9Bn
dbSi fold increase in the total number of cataract procedures
kI]1J from 1985 to 1994 has been documented in Australia [9].
-Ac^#/[0 The rate of cataract surgery per thousand persons aged 65
\hz)oC years or older has doubled in the last 20 years [8,9]. In the
"F^EfpcJ{9 Blue Mountains Eye Study population, we observed a onethird
'EQAG
' YV increase in cataract surgery prevalence over a mean
shD$,!
k 6-year interval, from 6% to nearly 8% in two cross-sectional
*m7e>]- population-based samples with a similar age range
aPbHrk*/ [10]. Further increases in cataract surgery performance
^m~=<4eX would be expected as a result of improved surgical skills
Gfvz%%>l and technique, together with extending cataract surgical
'{|87kI benefits to a greater number of older people and an
ixp %aRRP increased number of persons with surgery performed on
~=71){4A both eyes.
,yC~{H Both the prevalence and incidence of age-related cataract
ka (xU#; link directly to the demand for, and the outcome of, cataract
- na]P3 s surgery and eye health care provision. This report
SXhJz=h aimed to assess temporal changes in the prevalence of cortical
v;OA hF r| and nuclear cataract and posterior subcapsular cataract
z\\MLyS (PSC) in two cross-sectional population-based
H;v*/~zl surveys 6 years apart.
>yaRz+ Methods
D =3NI The Blue Mountains Eye Study (BMES) is a populationbased
0g1uM:; cohort study of common eye diseases and other
(LnKaf8 health outcomes. The study involved eligible permanent
rtPQ:CaA)? residents aged 49 years and older, living in two postcode
#jnb6v=5v areas in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, Australia.
V-VR+ Ndz Participants were identified through a census and were
1Ztoj}!I invited to participate. The study was approved at each
-c Mqq$ stage of the data collection by the Human Ethics Committees
C}7Sh6 of the University of Sydney and the Western Sydney
BYRf MtT@+ Area Health Service and adhered to the recommendations
yAaMYF@ of the Declaration of Helsinki. Written informed consent
KZ&{Ya was obtained from each participant.
cZA l.}/ Details of the methods used in this study have been
p?ICZg: described previously [11]. The baseline examinations
} DoNp[` (BMES cross-section I) were conducted during 1992–
]5wc8Kh" 1994 and included 3654 (82.4%) of 4433 eligible residents.
\#L}KW Follow-up examinations (BMES IIA) were conducted
"OkJPu2!W during 1997–1999, with 2335 (75.0% of BMES
CnN PziB cross section I survivors) participating. A repeat census of
ji5c0WH the same area was performed in 1999 and identified 1378
4 1q|R[js! newly eligible residents who moved into the area or the
x= X"4Mj0) eligible age group. During 1999–2000, 1174 (85.2%) of
cJ=0zEv this group participated in an extension study (BMES IIB).
V_^p?Fi# BMES cross-section II thus includes BMES IIA (66.5%)
kocgPO5 and BMES IIB (33.5%) participants (n = 3509).
g{RVxGE7 Similar procedures were used for all stages of data collection
;Lr]w8d at both surveys. A questionnaire was administered
vL}e
1V: including demographic, family and medical history. A
)H8Rfn? detailed eye examination included subjective refraction,
E+)3n
[G slit-lamp (Topcon SL-7e camera, Topcon Optical Co,
](-zt9,
N; Tokyo, Japan) and retroillumination (Neitz CT-R camera,
bi~1d"j Neitz Instrument Co, Tokyo, Japan) photography of the
Xs}.7 lens. Grading of lens photographs in the BMES has been
u0p[ltJ, previously described [12]. Briefly, masked grading was
#q?'<''d, performed on the lens photographs using the Wisconsin
n
`
M!K:Pq Cataract Grading System [13]. Cortical cataract and PSC
O3 NI were assessed from the retroillumination photographs by
*!NxtB!LC estimating the percentage of the circular grid involved.
XtCG.3(L
Y Cortical cataract was defined when cortical opacity
n37P$0 involved at least 5% of the total lens area. PSC was defined
XSHK7vpMf when opacity comprised at least 1% of the total lens area.
YpJJ]Rszg Slit-lamp photographs were used to assess nuclear cataract
z;wOtKl5r using the Wisconsin standard set of four lens photographs
R`KlG/Tk [13]. Nuclear cataract was defined when nuclear opacity
L0.F}
~S was at least as great as the standard 4 photograph. Any cataract
Ua%;hI)j$ was defined to include persons who had previous
9x`1VR
: cataract surgery as well as those with any of three cataract
k:[T
#/; types. Inter-grader reliability was high, with weighted
C&HN#Q_ kappa 0.82 for cortical cataract, 0.55 (simple kappa 0.75)
I
>aKa for nuclear cataract and 0.82 for PSC grading. The intragrader
[,L>5:T reliability for nuclear cataract was assessed with
SwE bVwB simple kappa 0.83 for the senior grader who graded
w"{mDL}c nuclear cataract at both surveys. All PSC cases were confirmed
Cz|F%>y# by an ophthalmologist (PM).
]w0_!Z& In cross-section I, 219 persons (6.0%) had missing or
"^Vnnb:Z*o ungradable Neitz photographs, leaving 3435 with photographs
*b7evU *1 available for cortical cataract and PSC assessment,
{X5G while 1153 (31.6%) had randomly missing or ungradable
~6=aoF5"3? Topcon photographs due to a camera malfunction, leaving
";jKTk7 2501 with photographs available for nuclear cataract
:{,k F assessment. Comparison of characteristics between participants
CC)Mws+2 with and without Neitz or Topcon photographs in
:28[k~.bo cross-section I showed no statistically significant differences
=6a=`3r!I between the two groups, as reported previously
SohNk9u[8 [12]. In cross-section II, 441 persons (12.5%) had missing
@HE<\Z{ KI or ungradable Neitz photographs, leaving 3068 for cortical
97dF cataract and PSC assessment, and 648 (18.5%) had
O03F@v missing or ungradable Topcon photographs, leaving 2860
H#M;TjR for nuclear cataract assessment.
1 F&}e&}c Data analysis was performed using the Statistical Analysis
~7gFddi=i System (SAS, SAS Institute, Cary, NC, USA). Age-adjusted
hcpe~spz9| prevalence was calculated using direct standardization of
J|
1!4R~ the cross-section II population to the cross-section I population.
{]%7-4E We assessed age-specific prevalence using an
l,5isq
;m interval of 5 years, so that participants within each age
{mY=LaS< group were independent between the two cross-sectional
`a[
V_4wO surveys.
w4FYd BMC Ophthalmology 2006, 6:17
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2415/6/17 :)y3&