Cataract among adults aged 40 years and above in a rural area of Jammu district in India: Prevalence and Risk-factors

Background: Cataract is a major cause of avoidable blindness worldwide and is likely to burden health care systems as the world’s population ages due to increasing life expectancy. Therefore, assessment of its public health importance and identification of major risk-factors will be crucial in planning strategies to delay its development. Methodology: A cross-sectional, population-based study of cataract was undertaken among adults aged 40 years and above in two randomly selected villages of RS Pura Block, Jammu. Those eligible were subjected to interview and ocular examination using Distant Direct Ophthalmoscopy (DDO). For the purpose of statistical analysis, both aphakic and pseudophakic eyes were included as operated cataracts. Results: Out of 594 persons enumerated as eligible for the study, only 547 were examined with an overall response rate of 92.09%, whereas rest of the 47, who could not be contacted, were excluded from the study. Data analysis revealed a cataract prevalence of 24.86% which increased significantly with age. A significant association of cataract was also seen with low literacy status, outdoor occupation, family history of cataract and lower BMI; whereas no association was observed with other factors viz. sex, Socio-economic Status, Diabetes Mellitus and Hypertension. Conclusion: Cataract is a serious public health problem, even after the blindness control program has been active for almost 35 years. Moreover, as NPCB has recently been integrated with other programmes under National Rural Health Mission, such epidemiological studies regarding blindness and cataract need to be carried out to assess the prevalence of the problem and, thereby, guide resource allocation and relevant interventions.