Publisher's Synopsis
A successful treatment for restoring vision is extracapsular cataract extraction and implantation of intraocular lens (ECCE/IOL). Due to the absence of adequate facilities in developing countries, and because of its high prevalence and the tendency towards earlier intervention in developed countries, cataract has become a global health problem. Not to mention that in 20-40 % of all cases ECCE/IOL surgery leads to posterior capsule opacification (PCO). In this issue present knowledge on the epidemiology of cataract and the risk factors involved worldwide are summarized. The pros and cons of subjective (LOCS III or comparable classifications) vs. objective (Scheimpflug photography, retroillumination) assessment protocols are discussed thoroughly, and recent technical developments of anterior eye segment cameras described. Improvement in surgical procedures and IOL designs have marginally reduced the occurrence of PCO or after-cataract. This has led to renewed interests in the cell and molecular biological aspects of the phenomenon and recent developments in this field were summarized. This issue is of high relevance not only to clinicians involved in cataract treatment, but also to health care officers and, furthermore, the basic aspects are of interest for eye researchers.
