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HAS SNELLEN CHART LOST THE BATTLE TO ETDRS IN CATARACT SURGERY VISUAL ACUITY EVALUATION?
Sanja Petrović Pajić1, Tiana Petrović1, Milenko Stojković1
11Eye Hospital, Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia; 2Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia; 3Emergency Medical Care, Belgrade, Serbia; 4Faculty of Health and Business, Singidunum University, Valjevo, Serbia.
Abstract:
This study was designed to explore practical differences between visual acuity (VA) scores measured on Snellen chart versus ETDRS chart, to grade cataracts using LOCS III system, and to compare VA on both charts depending on cataract grade and type. Prospective evaluation of uncorrected and best-corrected visual acuity was carried out on the eye scheduled for cataract surgery preoperatively and postoperatively on the Snellen and ETDRS charts. The study was carried out at Department of Eye Diseases, Clinical Center of Serbia, during a two-year period. Inclusion criteria were met by 540 patients who underwent testing, surgery, data collection and analysis. The mean VA score was better on ETDRS than on Snellen chart. The mean difference was 6.05 letters or 1.21 lines. VA results correlated with all types of cataract regardless of the chart used, with the highest statistical significance (p<0.0001) for subcapsular cataract. The ETDRS chart was found to be more discriminative and precise than Snellen chart, especially for poor VA.
