Systemic and Ocular Comorbidities of Black, Hispanic, and White Women with Cataracts.

Abstract

Background: Cataracts are one of the leading causes of blindness in the world and disproportionately affect the elderly people and women. Sex- and race-related differences in cataract formation are not well understood. Furthermore, race and socioeconomic factors can play a role in developing systemic diseases. Earlier studies have supported a link between certain systemic diseases and cataract formation. Our study examined race-related differences in ocular and systemic comorbidities and analyzed differences among races and insurance types for cataract surgery visual outcomes among female patients with cataracts. Materials and Methods: Data were collected retrospectively and patients were grouped by race and insurance classifications. Female patients at a large tertiary center with an International Classification of Disease, 9th Edition (ICD-9) or ICD-10 cataract diagnosis or cataract extraction procedure code between January 2013 and June 2018 were included. A total of 909 female patients were included in the study. Frequency of systemic and ocular comorbidities was analyzed. Demographic factors were also compared among races. Finally, characteristics of cataract surgery patients, such as age at surgery, preoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and visual outcomes among races and insurance types were analyzed. Results: There are differences among races for frequency of smoking, hemoglobin A1c, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus in female patients with cataracts and differences among races and insurance types for preoperative BCVA for patients who underwent cataract surgery (p < 0.001 for all). Conclusions: Female minority and non-minority patients with cataracts have a high frequency of systemic and ocular comorbidities at our county hospital. Patients with no insurance and white and Hispanic patients had worse preoperative BCVA.