Preventive effect of a second-generation silicone intraocular lens on posterior capsule opacification.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the preventive effect of a second-generation silicone intraocular lens (IOL) on posterior capsule opacification (PCO) with that of a soft acrylic IOL.


METHODS
Jinshikai Medical Foundation, Nishi Eye Hospital, Osaka, Japan.


METHODS
After phacoemulsification, a silicone IOL (PhacoFlex II) was implanted in 1 eye and an acrylic IOL (AcrySof) in the contralateral eye of 5 rabbits.


RESULTS
The posterior view 3 weeks after surgery showed slightly more PCO in 3 eyes with the PhacoFlex II lens than in eyes with the AcrySof IOL, with the PCO obscuring the iris structures. In 2 eyes with an AcrySof IOL, slightly more PCO was seen. Histopathological examination revealed that a bend and complex folds in the posterior capsule were formed with both the PhacoFlex II and AcrySof IOLs. However, the capsular bend formed by the PhacoFlex II lens, which was caused by its blunt edge, was not as sharp as that with the AcrySof IOL and more PCO was seen in all eyes with a PhacoFlex II lens.


CONCLUSIONS
Capsular bend formation does not necessarily require a sharp optic edge. A truncated optic rim of a certain thickness appears to form a bend. The capsule-bending does not appear to be an all-or-nothing effect. There seems to be a transition. That a capsular bend forms despite a blunt rather than a sharp optic edge may explain why the second-generation PhacoFlex II IOL prevents PCO better than first-generation and PMMA IOLs.
Nishi
Okihiro
O
Nishi Eye Hospital, Osaka, Japan. okihiro@nishi-ganka.or.jp
Nishi
Kayo
K
D000180:Acrylic Resins; D000818:Animals; D002386:Cataract / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007903:Lens Capsule, Crystalline / Q000473:pathology*; D019654:Lens Implantation, Intraocular; D007910:Lenses, Intraocular; D018918:Phacoemulsification; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D011817:Rabbits; D012826:Silicone Elastomers
D000180:Acrylic Resins; D012826:Silicone Elastomers