Clinical and Economic Impacts of Optical Coherence Tomography prior to Cataract Surgery in a Low-to-Middle-Income Country

• DOI: 10.20944/preprints202406.1858.v1
• Publication Date: 2024-06-27T03:56:42Z
• Authors: Mansur Inkarbekov; Mukhit Kulmaganbetov; Galiya Bazarbekova; Almagul Baiyrkhanova; Benjamin Thompson
• Keywords: Concomitant

Integrating optical coherence tomography (OCT) into the pre-surgical stage of cataract management holds significant clinical and economic potential, particularly in low-to-middle-income countries like Kazakhstan. This study aimed to evaluate these impacts by prospectively recruiting 124 patients, aged 70±8 years, from two ophthalmology surgical centers Almaty, Patients undergoing phacoemulsification cataracts with monofocal intraocular lens (IOL) implantation between January December 2022 were divided groups: OCT group (n=75) received pre-operative OCT, while Control (n=49) did not. Visual acuity (VA) was measured pre- post-surgery, cost-effectiveness strategies analyzed. The experienced a significantly greater improvement VA (-0.647±0.232 logMAR) compared (-0.543±0.244 logMAR), notable interaction time (F(df) = 217.2, p < 0.001). Additionally, pre-existing concomitant diseases diagnosed 25.3% cases 28.6% group. analysis revealed that integration facilitated multiple surgeries one appointment, thereby reducing overall costs. These findings suggest implementing can enhance visual outcomes decrease cost services