According to a new study published in the JAMA Internal Medicine Journal, cataract surgeries could be associated with a lower risk of developing dementia.
The study, called Adult Changes in Thought (ACT), is an observational study based in Seattle at the Kaiser Permanente Washington of more than 5,000 participants older than 65. Researchers have found that subjects who underwent cataract surgery had nearly 30 per cent lower risk of developing dementia from any cause compared with those who did not. This lowered risk persisted for at least a decade after surgery. Cataract surgery was also associated with a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease, dementia specifically, reported Hindustan Times.
Dr Cecilia S Lee, associate professor and Klorfine Family Endowed Chair in ophthalmology at the University of Washington School of Medicine, who is the principal investigator of the study said that the observational study adjusted for a number of potential confounders, yet still yielded a strong association. She added, “This kind of evidence is as good as it gets in epidemiology.”
“These results are consistent with the notion that sensory input to the brain is important to brain health,” said co-author Dr. Eric B. Larson, another principal investigator involved in the ACT study, and senior investigator at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute.
However, the mechanisms governing how cataract surgeries could reduce dementia were not determined in this study. Researchers hypothesize that people may be getting higher quality sensory input after cataract surgery, which might have a beneficial effect in reducing the risk of dementia.