Femtosecond laser-assisted capsulotomy for treatment of bilateral anterior capsule contraction.

A 51-year-old woman developed severe fibrosis and occlusion of the visual axis in 1 eye, maintaining a pinhole aperture in the fellow eye, 2 months after uneventful cataract surgery and implantation of a hydrophilic trifocal intraocular lens in the capsular bag. She had not exhibited any risk factor for anterior capsule contraction preoperatively. Femtosecond laser-assisted capsulotomy with a fluid-filled interface system was used to perform a simultaneous anterior capsulotomy in both eyes. Preoperative calculations of the incision depth of the capsulotomy were performed using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and adjusted intraoperatively with the OCT system of the femtosecond laser. The energy level used in the first eye was increased for the second eye (4 µJ to 6 µJ) because of severe capsulotomy tags that had to be cut with scissors. Despite the increase in energy, a free-floating capsulotomy could not be achieved in the second eye.

Effect of the Femtosecond Laser on an Intracorneal Inlay for Surgical Compensation of Presbyopia during Cataract Surgery: Scanning Electron Microscope Imaging.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of the femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) on porcine eyes implanted with a Kamra corneal inlay and to describe how the inlay may change the effect of the femtosecond laser on the lens. METHODS: FLACS was performed on six porcine eyes and a Kamra corneal inlay had been implanted, exploring the lens under the surgical microscope. Another Kamra corneal inlay was attached to the upper part of the transparent hemisphere used for calibration of the femtosecond laser. Capsulorhexis, arcuate incisions, and phacofragmentation were carried out. The Kamra corneal inlay was compared with a nontreated one using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the hemisphere was analyzed with a surgical microscope. RESULTS: Capsulorhexis and phacofragmentation were completed in all the porcine eyes, although accuracy to determine the exact effect on the lens was not possible to achieve. The effect of the femtosecond laser on the PMMA hemisphere through the Kamra corneal inlay showed the capsulorhexis was placed outside the outer margin of the inlay and a sharply sculpted fragmentation pattern with a three-dimensional (donut-shaped) annulus untreated beneath it. SEM images of the nontreated and the treated inlays were comparable. No ultrastructural changes were found in the treated Kamra corneal inlay. CONCLUSIONS: FLACS can be performed with a Kamra corneal inlay for surgical compensation of presbyopia without the risk of damaging the inlay. The Kamra corneal inlay acts as a screen that avoids the laser to reach the areas beneath its shadow, but not the exposed areas of the lens.

Porcine Model to Evaluate Real-Time Intraocular Pressure During Femtosecond Laser Cataract Surgery.

PURPOSE: To investigate the changes in intraocular pressure (IOP) in porcine eyes during femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery using a liquid-optic interface system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Femtosecond laser cataract surgery with the Catalys™ was performed on freshly enucleated porcine eyes in Oftalvist Moncloa, Madrid, Spain. Capsulorhexis and lens fragmentation were completed in all the eyes without complications. IOP was measured with a reusable blood pressure transducer connected by direct cannulation to the anterior chamber, recording data before suction (basal), at the beginning of the suction phase, every five seconds during femtosecond procedure and after the removal of the suction ring from the eye. RESULTS: Nine porcine eyes were used in this study. Basal IOP before suction was 5.67 ± 2.39 mmHg, rising to 20.33 ± 4.18 mmHg at the beginning of the suction phase (p < 0.001). During femtosecond procedure, pressure reached a value of 19.74 ± 4.31 mmHg, remaining stable during the entire process. The IOP recorded prior to removal of the suction ring was 21.00 ± 6.93 mmHg, returning to basal values in all the eyes after the suction ring was removed, with no statistical differences between basal and post-suction IOPs. Total femtosecond procedure time was 125.9 ± 15.9 s. CONCLUSIONS: Real-time IOP can be measured during surgery using a transducer connected to the anterior chamber. The results showed a significant increase in IOP during the procedure due to the pressure exerted by the suction ring but not by the effect of the femtosecond laser.