Practice patterns of Canadian Ophthalmological Society members in cataract surgery: 2011 survey

Objective: To establish the practice patterns of the members of the Canadian Ophthalmological Society (COS) in cataract surgery. Design: Web-based questionnaire. Participants: Members of the COS indicating practice focus to be cataract surgery. Methods: In January 2011 an e-mail with a link to Fluid Surveys was sent from the COS office to the 292 members who had indicated their practices' focus to be cataract surgery. A reminder e-mail was sent 3 weeks later. Approval for the survey was obtained from the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region Research Ethics Board. All responses were collected anonymously. Results: There were 92 responses (31.5%). In 2009, the response rate was 20.7%, and in 2010 it was 32.5%. The results of the 3 surveys were compared. There was a gradual increase in the use of topical-only anaesthesia, in the number of days during which the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) eye drops were used preoperatively, and in the use of multifocal and toric intraocular lenses. Postoperatively, the use of an NSAID eye drop alone remained unchanged, but there was a decrease in the use of steroid eye drops alone and a corresponding increase in the use of a combination steroid and NSAID eye drop. Conclusions: Over the past 3 years the majority of the practice patterns in cataract surgery by the members of the Canadian Ophthalmological Society have remained unchanged. However, there were certain areas where definite trends were noted.