Ophthalmology Outcomes
Cataract Surgery
The Comprehensive Ophthalmology and Cataract Consultation Service provides the full spectrum of integrated patient care, including annual and diabetic eye exams, prescriptions for eyeglasses, the management of a variety of chronic eye problems, surgical intervention, and subspecialty referrals for advanced care. The most common surgery performed at Mass Eye and Ear is cataract extraction with intraocular lens implantation.
Learn about comprehensive ophthalmology and cataract careAchieving Target Refraction (Spherical Equivalent)
During the 2022 calendar year, the Comprehensive Ophthalmology and Cataract Consultation Service performed cataract surgery on 3,265 eyes compared to 2,963 in 2021. This chart depicts the results of the 2,851 eyes with follow-up data available between three weeks and three months postoperatively. Excluded patients also lacked either sphere manifest or target refraction values. Of these 2,851 eyes, 96.2% (2,743/2,851) achieved within one diopter of target refraction, and 79.5% (2,266/2,851) achieved within 0.5 diopter of target refraction after cataract surgery.
Intraoperative aberrometry (IA) using Optiwave Refractive Analysis™ was introduced to Mass Eye and Ear in 2019. Continued study is needed to assess the potential benefit of IA for certain patient populations, such as those with a history of refractive surgery (e.g., LASIK, PRK).
Intraoperative Complication Rates
Of the 3,265 cataract surgeries performed during the 2022 calendar year at all surgical locations, 26 (0.8%) had intraoperative complications. These results are displayed in the graph above.
In addition, there were no cases of endophthalmitis after cataract surgery in calendar year 2022.
2022 Intraoperative Complications
| Complication | N (%) |
|---|---|
| Descemet tear | 3 (0.09) |
| Posterior capsule (PC) tear and/or vitreous loss | 20 (0.61) |
| Dropped lens/retained lens fragment | 1 (0.03) |
| Zonular dialysis | 2 (0.06) |
| Endophthalmitis | 0 (0.0) |
| Year | Overall Complication Rate (%) |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 2.6 |
| 2014 | 1.7 |
| 2015 | 1.8 |
| 2016 | 1.9 |
| 2017 | 1.6 |
| 2018 | 1.7 |
| 2019 | 1.6 |
| 2020 | 0.83 |
| 2021 | 1.1 |
| 2022 | 0.8 |
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Achieving Target Refraction (Spherical Equivalent)
1. Kugelberg M, Lundström M. Factors related to the degree of success in achieving target refraction in cataract surgery: Swedish National Cataract Register study. J Cataract and Refract Surg 2008; 34(11): 1935-1939.
2. Cole Eye Institute. Outcomes 2012.
3. Lum F, Shein O, Schachat AP, et al. Initial two years of experience with the AAO National Eyecare Outcomes Network (NEON) cataract surgery database. Ophthalmology 2000; 107(4): 691-697.
4. Simon SS, Chee YE, Haddadin RI, et al. Achieving target refraction after cataract surgery. Ophthalmology 2014; 121(2): 440-444.
Intraoperative Complication Rates
1. Greenberg PB, Tseng VL, Wu WC, et al. Prevalence and predictors of ocular complications associated with cataract surgery in United States veterans. Ophthalmology 2011; 118(3): 507-514.
2.Haripriya A, Chang DF, Reena M, et al. Complication rates of phacoemulsification and manual small-incision cataract surgery at Aravind Eye Hospital. J Cataract Refract Surg 2012; 38(8): 1360-1369.
3. Pingree MF, Crandall AS, Olson RJ. Cataract surgery complications in 1 year at an academic institution. J Cataract Refract Surg 1999; 25(5): 705-708.
4. Ng DT, Rowe NA, Francis IC, et al. Intraoperative complications of 1000 phacoemulsification procedures: a prospective study. J Cataract Refract Surg 1998; 24(10): 1390-1395.
5. McKellar MJ, Elder MJ. The early complications of cataract surgery: is routine review of patients 1 week after cataract extraction necessary? Ophthalmology 2001; 108(5): 930-935.
