Cataract News
Archive (2007)

New Discoveries About Cataract Formation Could Lead to Therapies

FRIBOURG, Switzerland and ROCHESTER, N.Y., November 2007 — New discoveries about the way proteins clump together in the eye's natural lens have given Swiss and U.S. researchers additional insights into possible future therapies that might prevent formation of cataracts causing cloudy vision.

Researchers at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland and at Rochester Institute of Technology in the United States conducted simulations demonstrating that certain proteins within the eye's usually clear natural lens clump together through weak attractions that, when disrupted, can cause the lens to cloud over and form a cataract.

Currently, the only effective remedy for cataracts involves cataract surgery, in which the eye's natural lens is replaced by an artificial one.

Researchers studying two crystalline eye lens proteins found that they either separate (no mutual attraction, left) or form clumps (strong attraction, right). The eye's natural lens stays clear, and cataracts do not form when attractions between these proteins are maintained such that they stay uniformly mixed (middle). (Photo courtesy of N. Dorsaz & G. Foffi/EPFL & IRRMA)

"By combining experiments and simulations, it became possible to quantify that there had to be a weak attraction between the proteins in order for the eye lens to be transparent," said Swiss researcher Giuseppe Foffi.

Experimental results were published in the Nov. 9 issue of Physical Review Letters.

More Than Half of Americans Will Have Cataracts by Age 80

ROCHESTER, Minn., July 2007 — More than half of Americans will have cataracts or undergo cataract surgery by age 80, according to the July issue of Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource.

The health publication notes that cataract surgeons no longer recommend waiting for a procedure until a cataract has "hardened" or matured. Instead, cataracts are surgically removed when vision problems caused by the eye's clouded natural lens begin to interfere with daily activities.

People who are 65 or older should have eye exams at least every two years so that age-related eye conditions such as cataracts can be monitored.

Studies Show It's Better Not To Wait for Cataract Surgery

OTTAWA, April 2007 — People who undergo cataract surgery within six weeks of booking their procedure have better visual outcomes, as well as increased quality of life and fewer adverse events such as falling, says research reported in the April 24 issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

In contrast, people who waited six months or longer for cataract surgery experienced more adverse events.

Study authors say that, in North America, 50 percent of people between 55 and 64 will develop cataracts within a decade. About 85 percent of people older than 75 develop cataracts.

Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Reduce Risk of Cataracts
and Macular Degeneration

SYDNEY, Australia, April 2007 — Cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins were found in two Australian studies to reduce risks of developing both cataracts and advanced age-related macular degeneration.

Researchers found in one investigation that statins inhibited development of cataracts by 50 percent. Results from both studies were published in the April issue of American Journal of Ophthalmology.

SofPort Advanced Optics IOL Now Eligible for Extra
Medicare Reimbursement

ROCHESTER, N.Y., March 2007 — Medicare will now pay an extra $50 in reimbursement for each use of Bausch & Lomb's SofPort Advanced Optics intraocular lens during cataract surgery.

The special "new technology" designation awarded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also applies to the Violet Shield version of the intraocular lens, which filters potentially eye damaging ultraviolet and violet light.

The SofPort Advanced Optics lens won the special designation allowing extra reimbursement because of demonstrated ability to reduce certain visual aberrations that may occur with more traditional intraocular lens designs.

FDA Approves New Version of Alcon's ReStor
Intraocular Lens for Cataract Surgery

FORT WORTH, February 2007 — The FDA recently approved a new aspheric version of Alcon's AcrySof ReStor intraocular lens (IOL) for cataract surgery.

The lens, known as the AcrySof IQ ReSTOR apodized diffractive aspheric IOL, addresses presbyopia by providing different zones enabling vision correction at near to far distances. An Alcon Laboratories statement says the newly approved aspheric optics design is the only one currently available in the United States in a presbyopia-correcting lens.

Researchers previously have produced evidence that aspheric lenses, which are somewhat flattened at the periphery, may help offset aberrations in the eye that can cause vision problems such as reduced night vision and contrast sensitivity.

Medicare Now Allows Lenses That Correct
Astigmatism for Cataract Surgery

BALTIMORE, February 2007 — A recent ruling by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services allows Medicare recipients to choose an astigmatism-correcting intraocular lens for cataract surgery.

While the ruling allows Medicare coverage for basic cataract surgery, patients must pay out-of-pocket for any extra features of a basic intraocular lens such as for astigmatism correction. But in the past, astigmatism-correcting IOLs were not covered at all.

Specific astigmatism-correcting IOLs approved for basic coverage will be listed at a future date, according to the Medicare announcement.