Cataract Surgeries on the Rise as Boomers Age

As Baby Boomers enter their retirement years, health care costs for complex and debilitating conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease are expected to soar. Not drawing as much attention is the likelihood of similarly rising expenses for common age-related medical procedures. A Mayo Clinic study looked at one of those — cataract surgery — and found that more people are getting the vision-improving procedure, seeking it at younger ages, and having both eyes repaired within a few months, rather than only treating one eye.

Senior author Jay Erie, M.D., a Mayo Clinic ophthalmologist, says, “Cataract surgery rates are rising in all age groups between ages 50 and 90, but the greatest increase is in the 70- and 80-year-olds. And part of that is that our older population, or the aging baby boomers, are working longer, they want to be more active, they have more demands on their vision. That’s why they’re looking for surgery sooner — so that they can remain independent, remain active, continue to work.”

The findings are published in Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.

Read news release.

Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. Erie, b-roll and animation are available in the downloads.