A study was recently published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society which revealed that seniors who had cataracts removed had greatly reduced odds of falls when compared to seniors who didn't have their cataracts removed.
Cataracts are the leading cause of vision loss in the United States with an estimated 20 million Americans over the age of 40 dealing with cataracts in one or both eyes. Cataract surgery is the most common surgery performed in the United States.
The study involved examining digital medical records on patients who were 60 and older and the data was split into two groups. The first group contained people with cataracts who underwent cataract surgery within 10 years of the diagnosis. The second group had people who chose not to have cataract surgery within 10 years of diagnosis.
Researchers found a significant reduction in the number of falls, upper arm and forearm fractures, ankle fractures as well as two types of brain hemorrhages. These findings correlate with previous findings linking cataract removal with lower all-cause mortality, falls and hip fractures.
