Cataract and cataract extraction in Nigerians. An evaluation of 567 extractions.

Abstract

Cataract is the commonest cause of blindness in the adult population in Ibadan, Nigeria. In a current survey of binocular blindness in Nigerians, cataract was the cause in 35 per cent. of I,ooo blind adult Nigerians and was also the second commonest cause of blindness in Nigerian children, being surpassed only by keratitis (Olurin, 1970). It is therefore not surprising that cataract extraction is the commonest ophthalmic operation performed in the University College Hospital at Ibadan, where in I968 it amounted to 45 per cent. of all operations. A report on the incidence and causes of cataracts and the operative com- plications of cataract extraction in Nigerians may be of interest to epidemiologists, and provide a useful guide for further investigation. This communication deals with cataract extraction in Nigerians in the 5-year period, I 964-I 968.