Factors associated with the uptake of cataract surgery and interventions to improve uptake in low and middle income countries: a systematic review

In this systematic review, we set out to address the following questions:

• What is the reported uptake of cataract surgery in low and middle income countries (LMICs)?
• Which factors are associated with the uptake of cataract surgery in LMICs?
• Which interventions have been reported to improve the uptake of cataract surgery in LMICs?

Our findings highlight the paucity of data and evidence around equity in access to cataract services. The little evidence that is available shows that women are more disadvantaged; other data is not consistent across contexts. Programmes should disaggregate by at least sex, disability and poverty, and publish their data.

We also found that there is almost no published evidence on interventions to improve cataract surgery uptake, highlighting a glaring need for more interventions and evaluations of their effectiveness.