BioMed Central
z^]nP87 Page 1 of 7
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(page number not for citation purposes)
F-t-d1w6 BMC Ophthalmology
&E
~7ty' Research article Open Access
aOOY_S
E Comparison of age-specific cataract prevalence in two
;a|A1DmZ population-based surveys 6 years apart
mGX;JOjZ Ava Grace Tan†, Jie Jin Wang*†, Elena Rochtchina† and Paul Mitchell†
&' Ch[Wo]H Address: Centre for Vision Research, Westmead Millennium Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital,
6Dch+*4*@ Westmead, NSW, Australia
'RhMzPmY> Email: Ava Grace Tan -
ava_tan@wmi.usyd.edu.au; Jie Jin Wang* -
jiejin_wang@wmi.usyd.edu.au;
6YN4] Elena Rochtchina -
elena_rochtchina@wmi.usyd.edu.au; Paul Mitchell -
paul_mitchell@wmi.usyd.edu.au MTQdyTDHl * Corresponding author †Equal contributors
{.sF&(e Abstract
/bVI'fT Background: In this study, we aimed to compare age-specific cortical, nuclear and posterior
J{91 t | subcapsular (PSC) cataract prevalence in two surveys 6 years apart.
nWh?zf#{ Methods: The Blue Mountains Eye Study examined 3654 participants (82.4% of those eligible) in
5 p750`n cross-section I (1992–4) and 3509 participants (75.1% of survivors and 85.2% of newly eligible) in
IV\@GM:ait cross-section II (1997–2000, 66.5% overlap with cross-section I). Cataract was assessed from lens
SFuzH)+VO photographs following the Wisconsin Cataract Grading System. Cortical cataract was defined if
=|6IyL_N cortical opacity comprised ≥ 5% of lens area. Nuclear cataract was defined if nuclear opacity ≥
aJ2
-BRn Wisconsin standard 4. PSC was defined if any present. Any cataract was defined to include persons
y|X[NSA who had previous cataract surgery. Weighted kappa for inter-grader reliability was 0.82, 0.55 and
pB )nQ5l' 0.82 for cortical, nuclear and PSC cataract, respectively. We assessed age-specific prevalence using
UO</4WJ an interval of 5 years, so that participants within each age group were independent between the
V&gUxS]* two surveys.
&9'6hM
u Results: Age and gender distributions were similar between the two populations. The age-specific
O,7P6 prevalence of cortical (23.8% in 1st, 23.7% in 2nd) and PSC cataract (6.3%, 6.0%) was similar. The
\wMr[_LW prevalence of nuclear cataract increased slightly from 18.7% to 23.9%. After age standardization,
gB?#T the similar prevalence of cortical (23.8%, 23.5%) and PSC cataract (6.3%, 5.9%), and the increased
.L8S_Mz prevalence of nuclear cataract (18.7%, 24.2%) remained.
nU/v(lN Conclusion: In two surveys of two population-based samples with similar age and gender
m]V5}-?al distributions, we found a relatively stable cortical and PSC cataract prevalence over a 6-year period.
wAITE|H<zj The increased prevalence of nuclear cataract deserves further study.
gXG1w> Background
-\LB>\;qn Age-related cataract is the leading cause of reversible visual
kz+P?mopm impairment in older persons [1-6]. In Australia, it is
/mvuSNk estimated that by the year 2021, the number of people
Wh"oL;O affected by cataract will increase by 63%, due to population
55fV\3F|R aging [7]. Surgical intervention is an effective treatment
R5qC;_0cV for cataract and normal vision (> 20/40) can usually
Cdc6<8 be restored with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation.
Uq7 y4z
J Cataract surgery with IOL implantation is currently the
'a*tee ^RS most commonly performed, and is, arguably, the most
OLlNCb#t cost effective surgical procedure worldwide. Performance
lQldW|S> Published: 20 April 2006
cs,%Zk.xjw BMC Ophthalmology 2006, 6:17 doi:10.1186/1471-2415-6-17
59IxY
? Received: 14 December 2005
](:aDHa Accepted: 20 April 2006
na_Y<R` This article is available from:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2415/6/17 AW1691Q © 2006 Tan et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
36e!je This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0),
a6fMx~ which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Av]<[ F/ BMC Ophthalmology 2006, 6:17
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2415/6/17 IZoa7S&t Page 2 of 7
EJ"[{AV (page number not for citation purposes)
Ag^Cb'3X of this surgical procedure has been continuously increasing
x<4-Q6'{S in the last two decades. Data from the Australian
H0_hQ:K Health Insurance Commission has shown a steady
H"6Sj-<= increase in Medicare claims for cataract surgery [8]. A 2.6-
}>>lgW>n,; fold increase in the total number of cataract procedures
s
`U.h^V from 1985 to 1994 has been documented in Australia [9].
7'k+/rAO The rate of cataract surgery per thousand persons aged 65
IMpEp}7 years or older has doubled in the last 20 years [8,9]. In the
XOAZ Blue Mountains Eye Study population, we observed a onethird
!inonR increase in cataract surgery prevalence over a mean
Zqc+PO3lw 6-year interval, from 6% to nearly 8% in two cross-sectional
i!@L`h!rw population-based samples with a similar age range
t
5g@t0$ [10]. Further increases in cataract surgery performance
Y1vl,Yi would be expected as a result of improved surgical skills
L&H4fy!> and technique, together with extending cataract surgical
X!KjRP\\ benefits to a greater number of older people and an
,Y6Me+5B increased number of persons with surgery performed on
b
`)^Ao: both eyes.
r~N0P|Tq Both the prevalence and incidence of age-related cataract
c;C:$B7 link directly to the demand for, and the outcome of, cataract
]{
;=<t6 surgery and eye health care provision. This report
x>TH yY[sq aimed to assess temporal changes in the prevalence of cortical
}%Dsy2:y and nuclear cataract and posterior subcapsular cataract
R]L|&{ (PSC) in two cross-sectional population-based
`uo'w:Q surveys 6 years apart.
gh>'O/9 Methods
:yO.Te
F The Blue Mountains Eye Study (BMES) is a populationbased
P]hS0,sE<( cohort study of common eye diseases and other
}c?/-ab> health outcomes. The study involved eligible permanent
H}5zKv.T residents aged 49 years and older, living in two postcode
\WKly areas in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, Australia.
vs}_1o Participants were identified through a census and were
:\[W] invited to participate. The study was approved at each
.cJWYMC stage of the data collection by the Human Ethics Committees
)D?\ru H of the University of Sydney and the Western Sydney
f.SV-{O_ Area Health Service and adhered to the recommendations
uSh!A of the Declaration of Helsinki. Written informed consent
QwPLy O was obtained from each participant.
(:v|(Gn/ Details of the methods used in this study have been
UZ#Yd|'
PD described previously [11]. The baseline examinations
~$xLR/{y (BMES cross-section I) were conducted during 1992–
_EMq"\ND 1994 and included 3654 (82.4%) of 4433 eligible residents.
\l)<NZ\ Follow-up examinations (BMES IIA) were conducted
ClZ:#uMbN during 1997–1999, with 2335 (75.0% of BMES
+iKs)s_~ cross section I survivors) participating. A repeat census of
M| r6"~i the same area was performed in 1999 and identified 1378
(s`oJLW> newly eligible residents who moved into the area or the
hwg
LJY? eligible age group. During 1999–2000, 1174 (85.2%) of
|Yq0zc! this group participated in an extension study (BMES IIB).
wX dtY BMES cross-section II thus includes BMES IIA (66.5%)
a|aRUxa0" and BMES IIB (33.5%) participants (n = 3509).
ukM11LD5x Similar procedures were used for all stages of data collection
}2dz];bR at both surveys. A questionnaire was administered
Gd^K,3:. T including demographic, family and medical history. A
qbu>YTj detailed eye examination included subjective refraction,
9v[cy` \ slit-lamp (Topcon SL-7e camera, Topcon Optical Co,
}<?1\k Tokyo, Japan) and retroillumination (Neitz CT-R camera,
2BTFK"=U Neitz Instrument Co, Tokyo, Japan) photography of the
QUa_gYp0v lens. Grading of lens photographs in the BMES has been
Ph[P$: 9 previously described [12]. Briefly, masked grading was
<?|v-(E performed on the lens photographs using the Wisconsin
Ml &Cr Cataract Grading System [13]. Cortical cataract and PSC
7PE3>cD were assessed from the retroillumination photographs by
We7~tkl( estimating the percentage of the circular grid involved.
)Rhy^<xH Cortical cataract was defined when cortical opacity
"r@f&Ssxb involved at least 5% of the total lens area. PSC was defined
GL4-v
[]6I when opacity comprised at least 1% of the total lens area.
dOm`p W ^ Slit-lamp photographs were used to assess nuclear cataract
w[g(8#* using the Wisconsin standard set of four lens photographs
N^,@
s"g [13]. Nuclear cataract was defined when nuclear opacity
'n'83d)z was at least as great as the standard 4 photograph. Any cataract
;^QG>OP$ was defined to include persons who had previous
{\tHS+] cataract surgery as well as those with any of three cataract
OGmOk>_ types. Inter-grader reliability was high, with weighted
53y,eLf kappa 0.82 for cortical cataract, 0.55 (simple kappa 0.75)
UsT+o for nuclear cataract and 0.82 for PSC grading. The intragrader
5p9zl=mT reliability for nuclear cataract was assessed with
jVh I`F{n simple kappa 0.83 for the senior grader who graded
&zVF!xNy& nuclear cataract at both surveys. All PSC cases were confirmed
?Bg<74 by an ophthalmologist (PM).
a3o4> 9 In cross-section I, 219 persons (6.0%) had missing or
K \?b6;ea ungradable Neitz photographs, leaving 3435 with photographs
R-xWZRl> available for cortical cataract and PSC assessment,
,`<w# while 1153 (31.6%) had randomly missing or ungradable
&[]0yNG Topcon photographs due to a camera malfunction, leaving
C[cNwvz 2501 with photographs available for nuclear cataract
%m8;Lh-X assessment. Comparison of characteristics between participants
5o2W[<