SYDNEY, June 27 (Xinhua/APP)–:A team of Australian scientists has released a new research that showed long wait times for eye cataract surgery in Australia’s public hospital system are leading to an uptick in having a fall among the elderly.
The study, published on Monday in the Medical Journal of Australia (MJA), analysed three years of data from people over the age of 65 who were referred for age-related cataract surgery.
It found that leading up to surgery patients were nearly 3 times as likely to suffer a fall, which dropped to twice as likely for the first year after surgery, before again dropping after the second surgery involved in the treatment of cataracts.
Professor Lisa Keay, head of the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), said that the findings show the need to reduce wait times, especially for older patients.
The study adds to the body of evidence supporting investment in timely access to cataract surgery for older people, as it is cost-effective for improving vision and preventing falls, according to Keay and her colleagues.
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