Visual evoked potentials and development on children with congenital cataract with surgery after 4 months of age.

INTRODUCTION AND

OBJECTIVES

Congenital cataract (CC) is a pediatric eye condition that causes low vision and blindness. Despite the possible surgical treatment to avoid disability, it produces a fifth of the world's blind children. Visual Evoked Cortical Potentials (VEP) is an essential procedure for clinical practice to evaluate the visual pathway and cortex; however, there are no reports of VEP in CC cases.

OBJECTIVE

To explore visual function in CC cases treated by surgical removal and lens implantation older than four months of age and their effect on their postoperative development.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

Prospective longitudinal study of 53 CC cases. VEP were done under standard techniques, exploring mono and binocular responses, obtaining waves N1, P1 y N2, and the amplitude of P1. The possible impact on child development was evaluated using Gesell scales.

RESULTS

All CC cases, except 6 with associated morbidities, had VEP responses. Before 12 months, they had moderate delays but followed the expected ontogenic reductions during postoperative periods. CC cases with more significant initial alteration obtained higher development quotients.

CONCLUSIONS

CC cases had VEP responses and had postoperative reductions according to age. Their preoperative developmental delays improved on postoperative period. VEP is useful for assessing the effect of surgery on child development. Although cases were diagnosed and treated late, considering the positive impact in cases younger than 12 months demonstrated that the recovery critical period window is remarkably more extended than the accepted on academic reports. These findings could modify the surgical criterion for treating CC cases, especially in less developed countries.