This standard defines data elements and values to meet information needs for the management of patients undergoing cataract surgery. The full cataract care pathway is covered, including information required at referral (level of vision, co-morbidity, medications), ophthalmological clinical assessment (details of ocular examination), preoperative assessment (ocular biometry, fitness for anaesthesia, fitness for surgery), anaesthesia (type of anaesthetic), surgery (details of procedure, any complications), postoperative treatments and recovery (eye drops, postoperative events) and visual rehabilitation (refractive and visual outcomes).

The standard does not cover:

• Complex cataract or crystalline lens problems requiring non-standard or complex combined treatments.
• Infants and children with cataract.

The primary purpose of the data set is to improve the quality of records and communications by standardising the content of electronic records made by health care professionals caring for patients having cataract surgery. It also ensures that information is recorded consistently in the different centres that provide cataract surgery in order to support audit, benchmarking and other secondary uses.

• Suppliers of systems to cataract units.
• Purchasers and Users of systems supporting management of patients requiring cataract surgery.