Two studies from rural Mozambique suggest cataract surgery is associated with benefits well beyond restored sight, including gains in quality of life, work participation, food and income security. The findings, from international development organisation Sightsavers, underscore the social and economic value of investing in accessible eye care.
Cataract surgery is one of the most cost-effective medical procedures 1, yet cataracts are the world's leading cause of blindness 2. In Mozambique, cataracts account for nearly half of all avoidable vision impairment 3.
The quantitative study, published in The Lancet Regional Health – Africa 4, gathered data from over 800 adults before surgery and 12 months later. It found:
- Median quality of life scores increased from 38.5 to 81.
- The proportion of people reporting severe functional difficulties in non-vision domains, such as self-care, decreased by 44.2 percentage points.
- The proportion of people reporting participation in 'own work', including farming, increased by 40.7 percentage points.
- The proportion of people reporting food and income insufficiency decreased by 42.3 and 25.8 percentage points respectively.
- The proportion of people reporting internalised and community stigma decreased by 51 and 34.7 percentage points respectively.
A companion qualitative study, published in SSM – Qualitative Research in Health 5, explored what recovery means in people's daily lives. One person who was interviewed told researchers: "After the surgery, I felt reborn; it was as if I had become young again. I returned to working in my fields, and my life gained direction, which is important to me. Now I think I still have many years ahead…I no longer feel dead as I did before the surgery; now I feel alive."
Dr Stevens Bechange, Global Technical Lead: Health and Disability Research at Sightsavers, and lead author of both studies, says: "Eye care is often a 'missing' topic from health and development priorities. But our studies show that cataract surgery is associated with improved daily functioning, renewed confidence and greater economic participation, as well as better vision."
"We commend existing efforts from governments, donors and others, but much more is needed to make avoidable vision impairment, such as cataracts, truly avoidable. Investing in eye care reduces inequality and poverty. The impact is transformative: more adults at work, greater independence, stronger communities and economies."
The quantitative study was completed in partnership with Forum das Associações Moçambicanas de Pessoas com Deficiência and Hospital Central de Nampula. An independent consultant and Catholic University of Mozambique supported the qualitative study.
Following the Global Summit for Eye Health earlier this month, the studies are a good reminder of why investing in eye care is so important. The Summit was hosted by the governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Guyana, Ireland and Nigeria, the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). Global leaders were asked to act, allocate and accelerate to reach people living with avoidable vision impairment.
