E-Cigarettes, Depression Showed Association With Cataracts, Cataract Surgery

Posters presented during the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) 2026 Annual Meeting, which takes place from October 10 to October 12, 2026, in New Orleans, Louisiana, demonstrated how cataracts and cataract surgery are associated with e-cigarette use as well as anxiety and depression. The findings indicate that cataracts and their treatment, or lack thereof, can affect the lifestyle of patients affected by the eye condition.

E-Cigarettes Associated With Cataract Development

A first poster examined how the use of e-cigarettes in patients could affect the development of ocular surface diseases (OSDs) and cataracts.¹ The researchers used data from the NIH All of Us Research Program to conduct their analysis.

There were more than 878,000 participants who were in the Research Program and acted as the pool of potential participants. Adults were separated into groups based on e-cigarette use and the frequency of their use. Participants could indicate that they used e-cigarettes “some days” or “every day” to help separate the groups. Participants who also used traditional cigarettes were included. Propensity matching was performed based on comorbidities, demographics, and health care use. Adjusted ORs (aORs) were calculated using a multivariable logistic regression.

There were 34,917 matched pairs who were included in the study. The researchers found that the use of e-cigarettes was associated with higher odds of both cataracts (aOR, 1.11) and OSDs. The OSDs included tear film insufficiency (aOR, 1.23), meibomian gland dysfunction (aOR, 1.28), and blepharitis (aOR, 1.38). Higher odds of cataracts and OSDs were found in those who used e-cigarettes more frequently, and those who used both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes had the strongest association with the development of cataracts or OSDs.

The researchers concluded that history of use of e-cigarettes with or without the use of traditional cigarettes is imperative for primary care physicians and eye care doctors to identify in order to properly assess the risk of eye conditions in this population.

Cataract Surgery Helps Avoid Depression, Anxiety in Patients

A separate poster evaluated how the treatment of those who developed cataracts can affect mental health across the board.² The researchers used the TriNetX database to gather data to conduct the analysis.

Participants were chosen from the database if they had been identified as having cataracts between 2010 and 2025. The participants were stratified by age group (18-29, 30-64, and 65 years or older) and by their surgery status. Relative risk ratios were used to compare the incidence of new-onset depression and anxiety after propensity score matching. The patients were followed for 12 months after their surgery to assess their mental health. Any patient with prior mental health outcomes was excluded from the study.

There were 786,022 participants who were included in this study and matched for analysis. The researchers found that cataract surgery was associated with a lower risk of depression (relative risk [RR], 0.93; 95% CI, 0.90-0.95). There was no difference in anxiety between the 2 groups.

Those aged 30 to 64 years had lower rates of both depression (RR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.64-0.94) and anxiety (RR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.86-0.92). Those aged 65 years or older had lower rates of depression (RR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.74-0.83). Those aged 18 to 29 years showed no significant difference in rates of depression or anxiety.

The researchers concluded that the treatment of cataracts with cataract surgery can help to alleviate the incidence of depression and anxiety in those who live with cataracts. This knowledge can help health care practitioners decide how to address cataracts.

References

1. Pathuri S, Shah J, Ong J, et al. Associations of electronic cigarette use with ocular surface disease and cataracts in the NIH All of Us Research Program. Poster presented at: AAO 2026; October 10-12, 2026; New Orleans, LA. Abstract PO339.
2. Zhang RS, Degoian NT, Spratt MA, Fazio N, Weissbart SB. The association between cataract surgery and risk of depression or anxiety in a large retrospective cohort. Poster presented at: AAO 2026; October 10-12, 2026; New Orleans, LA. Abstract PO278.