Cataract extraction rates in Olmsted County, Minnesota, 1980 through 1994
K. H. Baratz, D. T. Gray, D. O. Hodge, L. C. Butterfield and D. M. Ilstrup
Department of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., USA. baratz.keith@mayo.edu
OBJECTIVE: To analyze population-based trends in cataract extraction.
DESIGN: Rochester Epidemiology Project databases; which capture virtually
all health care services provided to residents of Olmsted County,
Minnesota, were used to perform retrospective cohort analyses of rates of
primary cataract extractions performed between 1980 and 1994. PARTICIPANTS:
The population of Olmsted County, Minnesota. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:
Incidence rates adjusted to the age and sex distribution of the 1990 US
white population were analyzed using Poisson regression. RESULTS: The 4257
procedures performed on 3176 patients of all ages represented overall
annual age-adjusted rates of 404 procedures per 100,000 females and 320 per
100,000 males. Annual age- and sex-adjusted rates for both sexes combined
rose from 133 procedures per 100,000 in 1980 to a peak of 507 per 100,000
in 1992. The rates fell to 470 per 100,000 in 1994. Manual review of a
random sample of records estimated case overascertainment at 0.9%.
CONCLUSIONS: With the exception of 1988 and 1989, rates of cataract surgery
in this geographically circumscribed population increased every year
between 1980 and 1992. Data from 1993-1994 indicate that rates may have
plateaued and possibly declined slightly. If sustained, these patterns
could have major implications for future utilization of ophthalmologic
resources.
