All procedures in this study involving human participants were performed in accordance with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments. Etik Kurul Onayı: Bu çalışma için onay Osmangazi Üniversitesi Etik Kurulu'ndan alınmıştır (no: 24; 10.10.2019). İnsan katılımcıların katıldığı çalışmalardaki tüm prosedürler, 1964 Helsinki Deklarasyonu ve daha sonra yapılan değişiklikler uyarınca gerçekleştirilmiştir.

Introduction: Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) has become a major concern for anesthesiologists and surgeons, particularly in elderly who already have limited cognitive status. General anesthesia is a well known risk factor for this entity. However, there is insufficient data regarding the association between regional anesthesia and POCD. This study aimed to investigate the impact of different regional anesthesia techniques on the development of POCD in elderly patients undergoing cataract surgery. Methods: The patients above 65 years who underwent cataract surgery were enrolled in this study. All patients were assigned to one of two anesthesia groups; topical anesthesia group (n=16) and retrobulbar blockade group (n=25). Cognitive status was assessed preoperatively and postoperatively (1st hour, 1st day, and 1st week), using Blessed Orientation-Memory-Concentration (BOMC) test. Results: The groups were similar in terms of age, gender, American Society of Anesthesiologist score, educational status, and baseline hemodynamic values (p>0.05). Postoperative lower BOMC scores were found in both groups at all 3 times when compared to preoperative scores however differences were not statistically significant. There were no differences in all BOMC scores between the groups (p>0.05). Conclusion: Both topical and retrobulbar blockade anesthesia had no significant effect on the development of POCD in geriatric patients undergoing cataract surgery.