Dr. Shruti Shirwadkar
BACKGROUND Phacoemulsification has become the predominant procedure to manage cataracts in developed countries while manual small-incision cataract surgery (SICS) has emerged as a cost-effective alternative treatment modality to phacoemulsification in the developing world. We wanted to compare the postoperative visual outcome in unaided and aided visual acuity and induced astigmatism in patients undergoing phacoemulsification and SICS. METHODS This prospective observational research design was conducted among 200 cataract patients in the age group of 40 - 70 years in a tertiary care institute in a metropolitan city from January 2016 to October 2017. Hundred patients from both SICS and phacoemulsification each were included in the study. RESULTS The mean age in Phaco group was 60.72±4.31 years while mean age in SICS group was 61.91±5.36 years. After surgery, both unaided visual acuity and best corrected visual acuity improved in Phaco group as compared to SICS group at postoperative day 1, day 3, day 7 and at 2 weeks. There was significant difference in mean astigmatism in diopters within groups in both groups at various intervals of time. CONCLUSIONS Manual small-incision cataract surgery is comparable to phacoemulsification for the rehabilitation of the patient with cataract, although the phacoemulsification technique has less surgically induced astigmatism as compared to SICS.
