Eyeworld

18 | EYEWORLD | SEPTEMBER 2023 ASCRS NEWS EYEWORLD JOURNAL CLUB by Naomi E. Gutkind, MD, 1 Flavius A. Beca, MD, 1* Ramsey Yusuf, MD, 1* and Rebecca Lees, BS 2* 1 Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida 2 McKnight Vision Research Center, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida *These authors contributed equally to the review. equivalents in India to 130 kg CO 2 equivalents in the U.K. 6–8 The lower footprint in places like India have been attributed to reusable materi- als and reduced waste production, not only for cataract surgery but also in other contexts like obstetrics and gynecology. This study provides an actionable recommendation within the existing supply chain and practice patterns of single-use materials. Methods This multicenter retrospective study analyzed the makeup of cataract packages from three Austrian hospitals. Gray literature was reviewed to identify package components, using the material with the most detrimental environmen- tal impact if a description could not be found. Components of each package were placed into a category of surgical gowns, cannulas, syringes, postoperative eye protection, surgical trays/ bowls, knives, fluid management, drapes/cov- ers, or packaging and entered into the GaBi Product Sustainability and Performance Soft- ware to calculate the global warming potential (GWP) of each component. A mean weight was EyeWorld Journal Club review Anh Pham, MD, PhD Associate Ophthalmology Residency Program Director of Research Bascom Palmer Eye Institute University of Miami Miami, Florida Review of "Potential environmental effect of reducing the variation of disposable materials used for cataract surgery" W hile climate change poses a great threat to human health, the global healthcare sector itself is responsible for a large share (5–10%) of all greenhouse emissions. 1–4 Globally, cataract surgery is one of the most common surgeries performed (more than 30 million procedures annually) and is therefore a significant contributor to the overall carbon footprint. 5 Defining the carbon footprint is difficult, and methodologies vary widely. Past studies have divided emissions into three sec- tors: direct emissions from building energy use, direct emissions from the travel of patients and staff, and indirect procurement emissions. 6 Winklmair et al. focused on the medical equip- ment component of the procurement sector, which prior studies have shown to be the single largest component to the overall footprint. Indeed, the global carbon footprint of cataract surgery varies a great degree from 6 kg CO 2 continued on page 20 From left: Flavius A. Beca, MD, Naomi E. Gutkind, MD, Rebecca Lees, BS, Ramsey Yusuf, MD

• Blank Page