Central corneal thickness changes following manual small incision cataract surgery

AbstractObjectives1) To study the changes in central corneal thickness (CCT) which is an indirect indicator of corneal endothelial dysfunction after uncomplicated small incision cataract surgery (SICS) and 2) To study changes in macular thickness following uncomplicated SICS.MethodsThis was a prospective study conducted in Reiyukai Eiko Masunaga eye hospital, Banepa, Nepal. Those who fulfill inclusion criteria were included in the study. Small incision cataract surgery was performed on 68 eyes of 62 patients Change in central corneal thickness and central macular thickness from baseline was observed post-surgery on 1st day, 1 week and 6 weeks.Results33 females and 35 males were included in the study. Mean age was 58.26 years. This difference of visual acuity between pre and post-operative state was statistically significant. The 1st post-operative day (POD) and 1 week POD values when compared with preoperative CCT values were statistically significant. But the 6 weeks POD when compared to preoperative CCT values were not statistically significant. The 1st POD, 1 week POD and 6 weeks POD CMT values when compared with preoperative CMT values were statistically significant.ConclusionThis study revealed that there was a significant rise in CCT after SICS which gradually tended to normalize at 6 weeks. Similarly there was a gradual rise in CMT after SICS persisting even at 6 weeks. However these changes were subtle and there was a marked improvement of visual acuity after SICS.SynopsisThere was statistically significant increase in central corneal thickness and central macular thickness following uncomplicated small incision cataract surgery, the former of which tends to normalize at 6 weeks post-surgery.

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Stabilization of refractive error and associated factors following small incision phacoemulsification cataract surgery

BMC Ophthalmology ◽

10.1186/s12886-021-02221-w ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Ammar M Khan ◽

Derek M. Waldner ◽

Micah Luong ◽

Emi Sanders ◽

Andrew C. S. Crichton ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Cataract Surgery ◽

Refractive Error ◽

Central Corneal Thickness ◽

Corneal Thickness ◽

Spherical Equivalent ◽

Small Incision ◽

Lens Position ◽

Phacoemulsification Cataract Surgery

Abstract Background Accumulating evidence suggests that refractive stabilization occurs rapidly following small incision cataract surgery. Nonetheless, many guidelines still suggest waiting four to 6 weeks before prescribing corrective lenses. This study was undertaken to supplement the existing literature regarding refractive stabilization, and evaluate multiple contributing factors that could dissuade clinicians from confidently correcting refractive error in the early post-operative course following routine cataract surgeries. Methods Adult patients undergoing phacoemulsification cataract surgery with uncomplicated surgeries and post-surgical courses at the Calgary Ophthalmology Centre (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) were included in this prospective observational case series. Exclusion criteria included known corneal dystrophies, infectious keratitis, complicated surgery or toric/multifocal IOLs. Data was collected at weekly intervals for a total of 6 weeks. Collected data included autorefraction, visual acuity, corneal pachymetry, and effective lens position. Results One hundred six eyes of 104 patients were included in this study. Post-operative sphere, cylinder and spherical equivalent were not significantly different at any post-operative week compared with week six, and 80–86% of patients were within 0.5D of last follow-up spherical equivalent at any week. The secondary outcomes of central corneal thickness, effective lens position and visual acuity did, however, exhibit significant differences between early post-operative weeks and last follow-up values. Conclusions These data suggest that refractive error can be effectively measured and corrected as early as one-week post-operatively in the majority of patients, though other measures of post-operative stability including central corneal thickness, effective lens position and visual acuity can require up to 4 weeks to stabilize. Thus a conservative and pragmatic approach may be to wait until 4 weeks post-operatively prior to obtaining refractive correction following uncomplicated phacoemulsification cataract surgery.

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