Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: To investigate changes to ocular perfusion characteristics following small incision cataract surgery and intraocular lens implantation. Methods: Ocular haemodynamics were measured immediately pre-operatively and one month post-operatively in 25 eyes of 25 patients (mean age 72.6 7.9 yrs) scheduled for small incision cataract surgery. Only subjects free from cardiac disease, diabetes and ocular disorders other than cataract were included. Each patient was requested to follow a strict diet prior to blood flow measurements to minimise local fluctuations. For each eye, the ocular blood flow analyser was used to obtain measurements of intraocular pressure (IOP), pulse amplitude (PA), pulsatile ocular blood flow (POBF), pulse volume (PV) and pulse rate (PR). Systemic measures of systolic and diastolic blood pressure were obtained at each visit and used to determine ocular perfusion pressure (OPP). Repeated measures ANCOVA was used to compare pre- and post-operative findings with the percentage change of OPP as a covariate. Results: IOP decreased significantly from 16.27mmHg 2.92 pre-operatively to 13.56mmHg 2.48 post-operatively (p=<0.001). POBF increased significantly from 13.64.1µl/sec pre-operatively to 14.73 4.0µl/sec post-operatively (p=0.012). PV increased significantly from 5.51.9µl pre-operatively to 6.3 2.1µl post-operatively (p<0.001). No change was apparent for PA or PR (p≷0.05). Conclusion: Reduced IOP is accompanied by increased ocular blood flow following cataract surgery. This finding may have positive implications for glaucoma patients undergoing cataract surgery.
Keywords: 338 cataract • 331 blood supply • 444 intraocular pressure