Accuracy of the potential acuity meter in predicting the visual outcome in cases of cataract associated with macular degeneration.

In order to ascertain the accuracy and specificity of the Potential Acuity Meter (PAM) in the preoperative evaluation of likely postoperative visual acuity in cases of cataract associated with age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), we studied the results in 130 cases, 54 of whom had preoperatively proved or suspected ARMD associated with a cataract. All of them were operated with extracapsular extraction and implantation of an intraocular lens (IOL), and final visual acuity was established when all the patients were visited three months postoperatively. A positive linear correlation was found between normal ocular fundus and PAM prediction (r = 0.77), and in the group of patients with preoperatively confirmed ARMD (r = 0.77). No difference was found between the preoperative PAM estimation and the final visual acuity in both groups. The PAM prediction was less accurate in cases with doubtful preoperative ARMD (r = 0.58) for whom showed PAM the highest score of false negatives in favor of the final visual acuity. Our results show that PAM is a reliable clinical technique for the prediction of visual results after cataract surgery in cases with preoperatively proved or doubtful macular pathology. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding the sensitivity and specificity of the PAM in diseased or suspicious maculas associated with cataract.