Standard operating procedure and quality control standards for age-related cataract in Guangdong Province

Age-related cataract is the leading blinding eye disease in the world, and surgery is the only effective treatment. The good recovery of vision after cataract surgery depends not only on the patients’ ocular conditions but also on the surgical technique and quality management level of medical institutions. Standard surgical procedures, the accurate measurement and calculation of intraocular lens (IOL) power, and professional perioperative management are the keys to restoring the sight of patients. In addition, the National Health Commission proposed in the "Work Plan for Strengthening the Cataract Surgery Capacity Building of County-level Hospitals (2025-2027)" that the ability of county-level hospitals to perform cataract surgery should be further improved by strengthening the construction of equipment and facilities, assisting county-level hospitals in carrying out personnel training, and establishing standardized surgical system. Therefore, in order to standardize cataract surgery procedures, ensure the safety of the surgery and reduce surgical complications, under the leadership of the Guangdong Medical Association, the Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center of Sun Yat-sen University, in conjunction with 21 other medical institutions in Guangdong Province and 35 authoritative experts, jointly drafted this group standard. On the basis of referring to the domestic and international standards for cataract surgery and combining with the current situation of cataract surgery in Guangdong Province, they jointly determined this group standard. This group standard systematically describes the basic requirements for the software and hardware conditions of age-related cataract surgery, the indications and contraindications of the surgery, formulates the standard surgical procedures and quality control standards for cataract surgery, and introduces the prevention and treatment of complications or adverse reactions, providing guidance for all qualified medical institutions at different levels to carry out cataract surgery and quality assessment.