Outcomes of surgery for posterior polar cataract.
OBJECTIVE
To report the preferred technique and the outcomes of surgery for posterior polar cataract.


METHODS
Hayashi Eye Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan.


METHODS
Medical records of 28 eyes of 20 consecutive patients with posterior polar cataract who had cataract surgery were reviewed. The surgical techniques used, intraoperative complications, preoperative and postoperative visual acuities, and the causes of impaired visual acuity after surgery were examined.


RESULTS
Of the 28 eyes, 25 (89.3%) with a small to medium posterior polar opacity had standard phacoemulsification or aspiration surgery. Two eyes (7.1%) with a large opacity and soft lens nucleus had pars plana lensectomy, and 1 eye (3.6%) with a large opacity and hard nucleus had intracapsular cataract extraction. Among the eyes having phacoemulsification or aspiration surgery, posterior capsule rupture occurred in 2 (7.1%). The mean visual acuity improved significantly after surgery (P <.0001); however, the postoperative visual acuity was worse than 20/20 in 7 eyes (25.0%). The cause of the low acuity was amblyopia in 4 eyes (14.3%), impaired foveal function after retinal detachment in 2 eyes (7.1%), and macular degeneration in 1 eye (3.6%).


CONCLUSIONS
Posterior polar cataracts can be safely extracted if the appropriate surgical technique is selected. Visual acuity improved significantly in most cases, although some patients with a unilateral cataract had previously developed amblyopia.
Hayashi
Ken
K
Hayashi Eye Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan. hayashi-ken@hayashi.or.jp
Hayashi
Hideyuki
H
Nakao
Fuminori
F
Hayashi
Fumihiko
F
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000550:Amblyopia / Q000150:complications; D002386:Cataract / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D002387:Cataract Extraction / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007903:Lens Capsule, Crystalline / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000601:surgery; D008028:Light Coagulation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018918:Phacoemulsification / Q000009:adverse effects; D011184:Postoperative Period; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012421:Rupture; D013396:Suction / Q000009:adverse effects; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity