Cataract surgery practice and endophthalmitis prophylaxis in Australia

Session Details

Session Title: Cataract Surgery Practice Styles

Session Date/Time: Wednesday 17/09/2014 | 08:00-09:30

Paper Time: 08:06

Venue: Boulevard B

First Author: : J.Ng AUSTRALIA

Co Author(s): :    M. Bulsara   J. Cox   M. Guirgis   N. Morlet     

Abstract Details

Purpose:

Determine current cataract surgery practice and endophthalmitis prophylaxis regimes amongst Australian ophthalmologists and to compare current practice with a similar survey from 2003.

Setting:

Fellows of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO).

Methods:

A survey was sent to Australian-based Fellows of RANZCO about their cataract surgery practices and methods of endophthalmitis prophylaxis.

Results:

There were 407 respondents (42% of 963 surveyed) who reported 118,170 cataract operations complicated by 12 cases of endophthalmitis in 2012. The self-reported incidence of postoperative endophthalmitis (0.01%) decreased five-fold compared to a similar 2003 survey. Phacoemulsification was overwhelmingly the predominant surgical procedure (96%) with femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery comprising 3% of surgical volume. The majority of operations were performed under an anaesthetic block (43.5% peribulbar block, 21.3% subtenons block, 5% retrobulbar block) with temporal corneal wounds being most popular. Intracameral antibiotic use increased markedly from around 5% of surgeons in 2003 to 78% in 2012.

Conclusions:

Although some aspects of cataract surgery in Australia, such as the use of intracameral antibiotics, have changed markedly over the past decade, the use of topical anaesthesia alone has changed little with the majority of operations still performed under some form of anaesthetic block.

Financial Interest:

NONE