Phacoemulsification may not be a risk factor for progression of early AMD, study suggests

Performing phacoemulsification cataract surgery in eyes with early age-related macular degeneration does not appear to influence the risk of progressing to the neovascular form of the disease, a case-control study suggests.

Holger Baatz, MD, and colleagues in Germany reviewed data for 1,152 eyes of 696 patients with early AMD who received cataract surgery between January 2000 and February 2006. Investigators compared the rate of AMD progression for these patients with a control group of 334 phakic eyes of 202 patients who also had early AMD.

Both groups were followed for at least 1 year, the authors noted.

At baseline, phakic eyes had a mean visual acuity of 0.3/0.35, significantly better than the mean visual acuity of 0.4/0.49 among eyes scheduled for cataract surgery. However, at 1 year follow-up, the control group had a mean visual acuity of 0.3/0.39, which was significantly worse compared with the mean visual acuity of 0.2/0.26 in the surgery group, according to the study.

At final follow-up, neovascular AMD had developed in 28 eyes (2.43%) in the surgery group and six eyes (1.74%) in the control group, the authors noted.

After adjusting for age and baseline visual acuity, logistic regression analysis showed no significant difference between the groups in the incidence of neovascular AMD (P = .57), according to the study, published in the March issue of Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science.