Medical technology transfer for sustainable development: A case study of intraocular lens replacement to correct cataracts

Cataracts account for almost 50% of blindness in the world (17 million people). The magnitude of this problem is stunning, and affects the sustainable economic progress of developing nations where 90% of the blind are located (and likewise 90% of the $19 billion dollars in lost global productivity each year). The Vision 2020 program has called for eliminating cataract as a cause of avoidable blindness through intraocular lens replacement surgery (IOL surgery), a relatively cheap solution with good outcomes. This paper will: (1) give background on the scope and problems surrounding international technology transfer of IOL surgery; (2) develop the international medical technology transfer framework adapted from work by Lall and Wei; (3) compare programs in the countries of Nepal and Nigeria; (4) evaluate the success of their technology transfer of intraocular lens replacement; and (5) provide recommendations for sustainable international transfer of IOL surgery.