Comparision of two different surgical procedures for hard nuclear cataract

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy of manual small-incision cataract surgery with phacoemusification in the management of hard nuclear cataract.Methods 404 eyes of 386 senile cataract with hard nuclei grade over Ⅲ were randomly divided into two groups:small-incision cataract surgery group (206 eyes of 194 cases) and phacoemusification group (198 eyes of 192 cases).Primary intraocular lenses implantation were performed in all cases.The postoperaive visual acuities,corneal astigmatism and surgical complications were compared between two groups.Results For cataract patients with grade Ⅲ hard nuclei,there were no significant differences in postoperative visual acuities,corneal astigmatism,posterior capsule rupture and corneal edema beween two groups.For cataract paients with grade Ⅳ or Ⅴ hard nuclei,the incidence of corneal edema was much lower in manual small-incision cataract surgery group than phacoemusification group,and the difference was statistically significant.Conclusion Small-incision cataract surgery is safe,time-saving and easy to operate which is the ideal choice for hard nuclear cataract patients in rural hospital. Key words: Cataract, nuleus, hard;  Surgery, cataract, small-incision;  Phacoemusification