Abstract
Purpose :
To investigate if previous intravitreal therapy is a predictor of posterior capsule rupture (PCR) during cataract surgery.
Methods :
Anonymized data were extracted for eyes undergoing cataract surgery from 20 hospitals using the same EMR for cases performed between 2004 and 2014. Variables included as possible risk indicators for PCR were age, sex, number of previous intravitreal injections, indication for intravitreal therapy, grade of healthcare professional administering intravitreal therapy and cataract surgeon training grade.
Results :
Data were available on 65,836 cataract operations, of which 1,935 had undergone previous intravitreal therapy (2.99%). In univariate regression analyses, increasing patient age, junior cataract surgeon grade and number of previous intravitreal injections were significant predictors of PCR. Considering number of previous intravitreal injections as a continuous variable, the OR for PCR per intravitreal injection was 1.034 (p=0.010) after adjusting for increasing age and cataract surgeon grade. Similar analysis considering intravitreal injections as a categorical variable, showed 10 or more previous injections were associated with a 2.146 times higher likelihood of PCR (p=0.002) after again adjusting for age and surgeon grade.
Conclusions :
Previous intravitreal therapy is associated with a higher likelihood of posterior capsule rupture during cataract surgery. This study provides data to help inform surgeons and patients about the risk of complications when undergoing cataract surgery after multiple prior intravitreal injections. Further investigation is required to determine the aetiology behind the increased PCR risk.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2016 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, Wash., May 1-5, 2016.