The number of cataract surgeries performed after the coronavirus pandemic was announced has dropped by a third, according to data from the National Health Fund. Although the epidemic situation has improved significantly since 2020, ophthalmologists note that patients still do not report to the scheduled surgeries and visits.
Due to the pandemic, patients stopped reporting for surgery
Published Sept. 7, 2022 09:59
Fot. Getty Images/iStockphoto
Postponing the decision to perform the procedure may have very negative consequences for patients, warns Dr. Michał Biskup, head of the Ophthalmology Clinic at the Provincial Complex Hospital in Kielce.
- More advanced cataracts are more difficult to remove. More complications are possible, says the doctor.
Meanwhile, the operation is usually performed in Poland as a one-day admission to the hospital. The procedure itself consists in removing the opaque lens of the eye and replacing it with a monofocal artificial intraocular lens. Such a procedure is reimbursed by the National Health Fund.
Cataracts are manifested primarily by deterioration of visual acuity, rapid eye fatigue and increased tearing, as well as seeing the colors as faded. In some patients the disease is also associated with myopia.
According to data from the World Health Organization, cataracts affect over 65 million people worldwide. It is the leading cause of blindness.
