Associations of cataract, cataract surgery with dementia risk: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of 448,140 participants

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundCataract is the leading cause of blindness around the world. Previous investigations have assessed the relationship between cataract, cataract surgery and dementia risk, but their results remain controversial. Herein, we conducted a meta‐analysis to evaluate the associations between cataract, cataract surgery and the risk of dementia.MethodsWe systemically screened the literature from three electronic databases PubMed, EMBASE and CENTRAL until April 2023. The data were collected by two independent researchers. The hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) from eligible studies with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were adjusted into the risk ratios (RRs), which were pooled using the random‐effects model.ResultsA total of nine studies with 448,140 participants reported the associations between cataract or cataract surgery and the risk of dementia were included in this meta‐analysis. The outcomes of our pooled analysis indicated that cataract was associated with an increased risk of all‐cause dementia (RR = 1.24, 95% CI, 1.14–1.35, p < .00001), Alzheimer's disease (RR = 1.22, 95% CI, 1.10–1.35, p = .0002) and vascular dementia (RR = 1.29, 95% CI, 1.01–1.66, p = .04). Cataract surgery is associated with a reduction of the dementia risk (RR = 0.74, 95% CI, 0.67–0.81, p < .00001).ConclusionsCurrent evidence from the existing studies supports that cataract is associated with an increased risk of dementia, and cataract surgery may be instrumental in reducing the risk of dementia in patients with cataract.