Prognostic Factors Affecting Visual Outcome in Unilateral Traumatic Cataract Patients Managed at Tertiary Eye Hospital in Central India

Ocular trauma is the leading cause of unilateral blindness in children worldwide. Traumatic cataract is common sequelae of ocular injuries in adults and children. The timing of surgery is important for visual rehabilitation especially in children as the risk of amblyopia is high due to media opacity. Careful examination and a management plan can simplify the difficult cases and provide the best possible outcome. A total of 65 cases of unilateral traumatic cataract of age group 6-65 years with no co-existing posterior segment pathology, previous intraocular surgery or pathology were selected for the study. Study technique includes interview, clinical, ophthalmic examination and management. Patients were examined at 1st post operative day, 1 week and at 6 weeks. BCVA was taken at the end of 6 weeks and spectacles were prescribed accordingly. Majority of the cases were found in the age group of 11-30 years (44.6%). Blunt injury (55.4%) was more common than that of penetrating injury (44.6%). Total cataract (63.1%) was the commonest morphology seen. A statistically significant association was found between morphology of traumatic cataract and type of injury (p- value <0.05). The cause of decreased BCVA was mainly associated with zonular weakness and vitreous loss. Our study shows that good visual results can be achieved with traumatic cataract surgery if the posterior segment is not involved and the corneal scar does not block the optical axis. Penetrating injuries are associated with poor visual outcome postoperatively than blunt injuries due to central corneal scarring and astigmatism.