Abstract
The association between high myopia and cataract is already well established and an association between simple myopia and cataract has been suggested, but it has not been clear to what extent the myopia precedes the cataract or is the result of it. The present study compares the refraction of a group of 100 British patients at the time of first presentation with cataract in whom the refraction was also known four years previously, with a group of matched controls in whom the refraction was also known four years previous to presentation. The study shows that simple myopia does not appear to predispose to cataract. It is the development of the cataract itself, in particular nuclear sclerosis, which causes the refractive change towards myopia. The myopic change precedes the development of cataract, and patients over the age of 55 showing a myopic change in refraction have a very high probability of developing nuclear sclerotic cataract. The healthy aging eye and eyes with cortical cataract or subcapsular cataract, but without nuclear sclerosis, continue to show a gradual hypermetropic change with time.
Full text
PDF









Images in this article
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Burdon-Cooper J. THE DOYNE MEMORIAL LECTURE, 1922. Br J Ophthalmol. 1922 Sep;6(9):385–412. doi: 10.1136/bjo.6.9.385. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Chatterjee A., Milton R. C., Thyle S. Prevalence and aetiology of cataract in Punjab. Br J Ophthalmol. 1982 Jan;66(1):35–42. doi: 10.1136/bjo.66.1.35. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Fisher R. F. Senile cataract. A comparative study between lens fibre stress and cuneiform opacity formation. Trans Ophthalmol Soc U K. 1970;90:93–109. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kluxen G. Klinische und experimentelle Untersuchungen an Alterskatarakten. Fortschr Med. 1985 Mar 7;103(9):243–246. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Perkins E. S. Cataract: refractive error, diabetes, and morphology. Br J Ophthalmol. 1984 May;68(5):293–297. doi: 10.1136/bjo.68.5.293. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Shaffer R. N., Rosenthal G. Comparison of cataract incidence in normal and glaucomatous population. Am J Ophthalmol. 1970 Mar;69(3):368–371. doi: 10.1016/0002-9394(70)92266-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Weale R. A note on a possible relation between refraction and a disposition for senile nuclear cataract. Br J Ophthalmol. 1980 May;64(5):311–314. doi: 10.1136/bjo.64.5.311. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]