1.3 The epidemiology of cataract

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Age-related cataract is the leading cause of blindness and low vision globally and an estimated 18 million people are blind from cataract. Cataract surgery now accounts for more than half the ophthalmic procedures in some areas, and in several countries, it is the most common elective surgery. The increase in surgical rate has been 3 or 4 times in the last decade, but this increase has to be sustained and even accelerated to keep up with ageing and population growth.