Small-incision manual extracapsular cataract surgery in Ghana, West Africa.

Purpose: To evaluate the results of small-incision manual extracapsular cataract extraction surgery (ECCE) in a district hospital in West Africa.

Setting: Margret Marquart Catholic Hospital, Ghana, West Africa.

Methods: This prospective study consisted of 200 eyes of 193 patients who had small-incision manual ECCE between January 1999 and May 2000. For comparison, the charts of 32 patients (32 eyes) operated on between July and December 1998 using a limbal incision (control group) were retrospectively analyzed. Outcome measures included intraoperative and postoperative complications, postoperative visual acuity, and refractive astigmatism.

Results: In the small-incision ECCE group, self-sealing wounds were achieved in 129 eyes (64.5%). Vitreous loss occurred in approximately 3% of eyes in both the small-incision and control groups. The final visual acuities were similar between the 2 groups, with more than 90% of eyes in both groups achieving a final best corrected visual acuity of at least 20/60. Eyes in the small-incision group had faster visual recovery (P <.001), a lower incidence of fibrinous iritis (P =.02), and were more likely to have round pupils (P <.001) than eyes in the control group. The main complication of small-incision surgery was moderate corneal edema, which persisted until at least the 1-week visit in 14 eyes (7%). At the most recent visit, 1 eye in the small-incision group (0.5%) had bullous keratopathy.

Conclusion: In a district hospital in West Africa, small-incision manual ECCE surgery yielded faster visual rehabilitation and had a lower incidence of fibrinous iritis than standard ECCE surgery.