Critical elements of cataract prevention work in China

Abstract

Surgical treatment of cataract is the emphasis of prevention of blindness in China. In the past ten years, cataract prevention work has made great strides. However, the cataract surgery rate (CSR) in one million people is still far away from the developed countries, and not enough to eliminate the blindness of cataract in our country. The CSR is related to many factors. In this article, the issue of the CSR increase is commented from four aspects, including improving the quantity and quality of cataract surgery, increasing the allocation of ophthalmic resources to primary hospitals, strengthening the cooperation between the urban and backward areas in ophthalmology, and the economic factors. It is hoped that our ophthalmic practitioners pay more attention to the prevention of blindness, and the quantity and quality of cataract surgery could be increased. (Chin J Ophthalmol, 2017, 53: 801-804).