Relative afferent pupillary defect in patients with asymmetric cataracts.

PURPOSE: To prospectively investigate the incidence, associated factors, and prognostic significance of relative afferent pupillary defects (RAPDs) in eyes with less severe cataract than in contralateral eyes.

SETTING

Department of Ophthalmology, Seoul Municipal Boramae Hospital, College of Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.

METHODS

Forty patients with asymmetric cataract and a differences of 3 or more lines of Snellen visual acuity between eyes had detailed ophthalmic examinations including visual acuity, slitlamp evaluation, a swinging flashlight test before and after cataract surgery, and color vision assessment.

RESULTS

Twenty-three of 40 patients (58%) had an RAPD (mean extent 0.39 log unit +/- 0.17 [SD]) in the eye with less severe cataract. The RAPD resolved or switched to the other eye after cataract extraction. All 5 patients with a unilateral totally opaque lens had a contralateral RAPD, confirming the relationship between totally opaque cataracts and RAPDs. The difference in visual acuity between the 2 eyes did not differ between patients with RAPD and those without RAPD. There was no association between the presence of RAPD and postoperative visual acuity.

CONCLUSIONS

More than half the patients with asymmetric cataract had an RAPD that resolved in the eye with less severe cataract after cataract extraction. All patients with a unilateral totally opaque lens had an RAPD. The presence of a preoperative RAPD was not related to postoperative visual acuity.