Decreased Serum Zinc Levels in Patients with Senile Cataract

Introduction: Age related cataract is the leading cause of blindness in the world today and cataract extraction is the most often performed surgery. If a practical large scale intervention could slow the onset of cataract by ten years, the need for cataract surgery would be reduced by 45%. The causes of cataract are multiple, with nutrition playing a definite role. The usually high concentration of zinc in the ocular tissue, along with zinc deficiency being an established cause of Age Related Macular Degeneration, has led to an increasing interest in this trace element’s potential role in Age related cataractogenesis. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in The University of Health Sciences in collaboration with The Institute of Ophthalmology, Mayo Hospital, Lahore and The University of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Lahore. The sample size was 50 patients with senile cataract. Serum of 35 age and sex matched controls were taken. These patients were undergoing trabeculectomy for glaucoma. Results: Zinc levels were measured in the serum, by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The results supported the hypothesis that zinc deficiency could be one of the factors responsible for the development of senile cataract. Significant difference was observed in serum zinc levels of patients and controls (P < 0.001) showing that the patient serum zinc levels (0.896 ± 0.202 vs. 0.478 ± 0.278) are significantly lower than the serum zinc levels of controls.