The "anchor" anterior capsulectomy.

In recent years, continuous circular capsulorhexis (CCC) has become the preferred anterior capsulectomy in many ophthalmic centers. Yet, many ocular surgeons are still uncomfortable with it, especially when tearing the capsule on its lower semicircle, since this often results in corneal endothelial injury, and, thus, postoperative lower corneal edema. We present a modified anterior capsulectomy, which consists of a crescent capsulorhexis and a perpendicular discission, followed by circular tearing of the resulting capsular flaps. This "anchor" anterior capsulectomy (AAC) was used in 14 cases of elective extracapsular cataract extraction, followed by intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. The capsulectomy was successful in 12, and IOL implantation was successful in 12. The procedure was relatively easy to perform and resulted in good "in-the-bag" implantation, regardless of the IOL's overall length and the optic's size. AAC can serve as an intermediate step in learning CCC as well as a reliable alternative anterior capsulectomy.