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Cataract is by far the most common cause
of worldwide blindness. The new global initiative,
Vision 2020 (‘the right to sight’) is targeted
to help reduce this blindness, and it is,
therefore, most fitting that a feature issue
of CE Optometry is dedicated to cataract
and cataract surgery. To set the scene,
this issue opens with a worldwide perspective
on cataract by Professor Johnson, followed
by a discussion of the NHS surgical burden
form cataract by Minassian and Reidy. A
holistic model presented, exploring how
changes in service provision might impact
the population cataract pool over time.
Pesudovs and Elliott consider the major
types of senile cataract, their classification,
assessment and referral. A short history
of cataract surgery is provided by Munton,
who describes the early development of surgical
techniques, culminating in modern phacoemulsification
procedures, subsequently described in detail
in this issue by Lavin and Ormonde. While
modern techniques are often described as
safe and predictable, Green reminds us of
the potential for post-operative complications,
and highlights the expanding role of the
optometrist in co-management.
Finally, in the year of Sir Harold Ridley’s
death, it is fitting to conclude with an
article on developments in intraocular lens
design (Percival). The year 2000 saw the
50th anniversary of Ridley’s invention of
the IOL. It is of interest to recall the
marked resistance that many authorities
had at the time to IOL implantation, with
some surgeons believing the IOL to be a
‘time bomb’. Today, Ridley’s invention provides
millions of patients with exellent vision
post cataract-surgery, at least in the industrialised
world. In a recent tribute article, Apple
et al1 reflect that it would
be a spectacular legacy to Sir Harold Ridley
(a man also known to be devoted to the problems
of blindness in the developing world) to
accelerate and expand efforts to provide
the benefits of IOLs to needy individuals
throughout the world.
1. Apple DJ et al. In tribute to Sir Harold
Ridley. Survey of Ophthalmology 2000;
45 (Suppl 1): S7-S12.
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