Projected prevalence of age-related cataract and cataract surgery in Australia for the years 2001 and 2021: Pooled data from two population-based surveys

Abstract

This study aimed to estimate the number of Australians over 50 with cataract in the years 2001 and 2021. Data from two population-based studies were pooled: the Blue Mountains Eye Study and Melbourne Visual Impairment Project and Australian Bureau of Statistics population projections were used. Similar definitions for the three cataract types were used in the two studies (nuclear ≥ grade 4, posterior sub-capsular ≥ 1 mm, cortical ≥ 10% lens area or ≥ 25% circumference). Combining the three types and prior surgery, it was estimated that in 2001, 1.7 million Australians had clinically significant cataract in either eye and 320 000 had previously undergone cataract surgery. It was estimated tha..