Reflections on surgical treatment of congenital cataract

Congenital cataract is the first main cause of avoidable blindness in children. The manifestations of congenital cataract are diverse and complex, often associated with other ocular structural abnormalities. The infantile eyeballs are in the growth and development stage, the structure of eyeball wall is fragile, and the blood-ocular barrier is immature. Therefore, congenital cataract surgery features relatively higher surgical technical requirements with higher postoperative complications occurrence. Congenital cataract is not a miniature version of age-related cataract, which has its own unique surgical principles. In this article, issues including the preoperative characteristics of congenital cataract, surgical timing and techniques, and follow-up treatment, were discussed based on expert clinical experiences of Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center and relevant literatures. (Chin J Ophthalmol, 2021, 57: 11-16).