Cataract Surgery in Children from Birth to Less than 13 Years of Age: Baseline Characteristics of the Cohort

Objective To describe baseline characteristics, initial postoperative refractive errors, operative complications, and magnitude of the intraocular lens (IOL) prediction error for refractive outcome in children undergoing lensectomy largely in North America. Design Prospective registry study of children from birth to Participants Total of 1266 eyes of 994 children; 49% female and 59% white. Methods Measurement of refractive error, axial length, and complete ophthalmic examination. Main Outcome Measures Eye and systemic associated conditions, IOL style, refractive error, pseudophakic refraction prediction error, operative and perioperative complications. Results Mean age at first eligible lens surgery was 4.2 years; 337 (34%) were P 2.00 diopters in 15% of eyes. Conclusions Lensectomy surgery was performed throughout childhood, with about two-thirds of cases performed after 1 year of age. Initial surgery seemed safe, with a low complication rate. IOL placement was nearly universal in children 2 years of age and older. The immediate postoperative refraction was within 1 diopter of the target for about one-half of eyes.