Secondary cataract: an epidemiologic and clinical survey at the Yaounde Gynaeco-obstetric and Paediatric Hospital

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence and risk factors of secondary cataract. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective study involving a review of medical records in the ophthalmology unit of the Yaoundé Gynaeco-obstetric and Paediatric Hospital in Yaoundé, Cameroon, was carried out. All patients who had cataract surgery between January 2006 and September 2010 were included. Variables included age, sex, past medical history, morphology of primary cataract, type of surgery, intraocular lens implantation, site of implantation, intra- and postoperative complications, and the time lapse for the presentation of secondary cataract. Both univariate and bivariate analyses were carried out. The χ(2) test was used to compare proportions, and P-values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: A total of 864 eyes of 718 patients had cataract surgery. Ninety-two eyes developed posterior capsule opacification, giving an incidence of 10.65%. The mean age of patients who developed secondary cataract was 52.3 ± 23.05 years, with a range of 4 years to 84 years. Secondary cataract was more frequent in the age group of 0–20 years. The time lapse for presentation of secondary cataract was 64.7 ± 9.53 days, with a range of 1 to 504 days. Risk factors for the development of secondary cataract were age (P = 0.000), sex (P = 0.011), cortical cataract (P = 0.000), and postoperative inflammation (P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: The incidence of secondary cataract, though high in this study, is lower than that reported in other studies.