title: Intraocular pressure and anterior chamber depth before and after extracapsular cataract extraction with posterior chamber lens implantation.
abstract: Long-term intraocular pressure (IOP) was evaluated in 41 glaucoma patients after extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE) with posterior chamber lens (PC-IOL) implantation. All patients were initially monitored for a mean of 19 days. Eight failed to return for reexamination, but follow up of the other 33 continued for a mean of 12 months. IOP dropped significantly and the need for medication was reduced in all patients (particularly in those with open-angle glaucoma and prior iridotomy and iris suturing). The reduction in pressure remained significant in patients with simple or exfoliation glaucoma even after long-term observation. Pressure also significantly dropped in patients who had undergone previous ophthalmic surgery. The pressure drop was possibly due to a surgical deepening of the chamber angle. (Using the laser tomographic scanner, we found the same phenomenon in 50 patients without glaucoma: following ECCE/PC-IOL, the anterior chamber angle widened 9.3 +/- 4.3 degrees.)
authors.affiliation: Universitäts-Augenklinik Tübingen, Dept 1, Germany.
authors.forename: K P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Steuhl
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marahrens
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Frohn
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Frohn
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000867:Anterior Chamber / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002387:Cataract Extraction; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015812:Glaucoma, Angle-Closure / Q000601:surgery; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure; D007910:Lenses, Intraocular; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies