This is something I am not considering: the insertion of a needle into the
eye to displace a cataract. Nevertheless, in poor countries it continues
to be practiced, and the results are better than I would have guessed. A
follow-up study appears below:

Methods: In Wura Hausa, a community of approximately 12,000 inhabitants
near Yola, Adamawa State, in the southern part of north eastern Nigeria,
during a ten-day period in December 1994 a retrospective study took place.
The data were collected in co-operation with the traditional healers
themselves. Consecutive patients of a traditional eye centre who had been
treated for cataract by couching were interviewed and examined.

Results: Forty-two (65%) of the 65 eyes examined showed a corrected visual
acuity between 20/20 and 20/40. Sixteen eyes (25%) showed a corrected
visual acuity between 20/40 and 20/200. The median refractive correction
for optimal vision was + 10.0 D (range -2.00 to + 13.00 D). There was
neither observed evidence of an invasive technique having been performed
nor evidence of infectious consequences.