The Evolution of Cataract Surgery: The Most Common Eye Procedure in Older Adults

Authors and Disclosures

Lorne Bellan, MD, Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB.

Disclosure: The author has no competing financial interests.

Sidebar: Key Points

The prevalence of cataracts is increasing.

Cataracts are a major public health issue, especially in developing countries, since they are responsible for 47.8% of the world's total blindness.

Technical advances in surgical technique have resulted in safer, more rapid surgery that is very cost effective.

New lens technology allows correction of a variety of optical aberrations that previously could not be corrected with an intraocular lens such as astigmatism.

Future lens implants will likely be able to accommodate so that people may not need glasses after cataract surgery, even for reading.