Consider This Approach to Cataract Surgery in Patients with Retinal Diseases
Laser-assisted cataract surgery (LCS) using femtosecond laser appears to be superior to standard cataract surgery in patients with retinal diseases, according to a randomized trial involving 120 eyes, as presented by Fritz H. Hengerer, MD, vice chairman and senior head physician at University Hospital in Frankfurt, Germany, during the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery’s 2018 annual meeting in Washington, DC.
Participants were treated with either LCS (n=60) or phacoemulsification using pulsed ultrasound energy and intraocular lens implantation (n=60). This was followed by a pars plana vitrectomy with gas endotamponade. Investigators looked at intraoperative complications and other surgical outcomes. Among the results:
- LCS patients experienced a significantly lower effective phacoemulsification time vs the standard cataract group.
- The anterior chamber was more stable and fewer surgical steps were needed to regain a stable IOL-position after gas tamponade.
- All LCS patients showed a 360° overlap of capsulotomy and IOL optic after gas tamponade.
- Only 6 in every 10 in the standard group experienced such.
Hengerer F. Evaluation of safety and efficacy of cataract surgery combined with pars plana vitrectomy using a femtosecond laser in cases of retinal diseases. Talk presented at: 2018 ASCRS-ASOA Annual Meeting; April 13-17, 2018; Washington, DC.
