Copper, lead, cadmium and calcium in cataractous lenses

Lenticular copper, lead, cadmium and calcium levels were measured using atomic absorption spectrophotometry in 9 normal and 37 cataractous human lenses. The nuclear parts of the lenses were used for the study in both groups. The lenticular deposition of these four elements in cataract was statistically significant. In the cataractous group, males had higher levels of cadmium compared to females. No lead was detected in normal lenses. The calcium content was significantly higher in cortical cataract whereas the other elements were not correlated with the types of cataract.