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Gender and referral to cataract surgery in Sweden
P Olofsson1, M Lundström, U Stenevi
1Dept. of Ophthalmology, Sahlgren's University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden.
Purpose:
To investigate how cataract surgery was initiated and analyse possible gender difference in referral to surgery.
Methods:
Consecutive patients scheduled for first eye cataract surgery at three Swedish community-run eye departments were interviewed concerning how surgery was initiated.
Results:
649 patients were interviewed and 63.2% were female. The number of patients referred to surgery by an earlier contact with a health care provider was 271 (41.8%) and the remaining 378 (58.2%) patients had actively requested advice or help because of visual problems caused by cataract and without a prior regular contact. 44.7% of female patients were referred through a health care provider they visited for reasons other than cataract and the corresponding number for male patients was 36.8%. This gender difference is statistically significant at the 5% level.
Conclusion:
A health care provider that patients visited for other problems than cataract referred female patients to cataract surgery to a significantly higher degree than male patients.