Abstract
Purpose: :
To compare the time interval between cataract surgery and onset of posterior subcapsular opacity (PCO) in eyes implanted with intraocular lenses (IOL) of different material (silicone versus acrylic) and edge design (square edge versus round edge).
Methods: :
This was a retrospective review of patients who underwent Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy from January to October 2007 for visually-significant PCO, defined as best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) less than logMAR 0.3. Eyes were included that had undergone uncomplicated phacoemulsification of cataract with acrylic or silicone IOL implantation and were free of any other ocular pathology affecting visual acuity. The time interval between cataract surgery and the onset of visually-significant PCO was assessed. Silicone versus acrylic IOL groups and square edge versus round edge groups were compared using the Anova linear regression test.
Results: :
101 eyes of 91 patients were analysed. There 43 males (42.6%). The IOL implanted was acrylic in 64 eyes (63.4%) and silicone in 37 eyes (36.6%). The IOL was square-edged in 72 eyes (71.3%) and round-edged in 29 eyes (28.7%). The mean BCVA in the acrylic and silicone IOL groups were logMAR 0.45 and 0.53 respectively. Comparing edge designs, the mean BCVA in the square edge and round edge IOL groups were logMAR 0.43 and 0.59 respectively. The mean interval for development of PCO in the acrylic group was 26.7±17.3 months, and in the silicone group was 18.9± 14.9 months (p=0.02). The mean interval for development of PCO the square edge IOL group was 25.4 ±17.9 months and in the round edge IOL group was 20.0 ±13.1 months (p=0.14).
Conclusions: :
The time interval between cataract surgery and onset of visually significant PCO is shorter in eyes implanted with acrylic IOLs compared to silicone IOLs. IOL edge design did not appear to affect the time of onset of PCO. A larger prospective study is required to investigate this further.
Keywords: posterior capsular opacification (PCO) • intraocular lens