title: Postoperative course of intraocular pressure after cataract surgery with combined primary posterior capsulorhexis and posterior optic buttonholing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the natural course of intraocular pressure (IOP) after cataract surgery with combined primary posterior continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis (PPCCC) and posterior optic buttonholing (POBH) of the intraocular lens (IOL) in adult patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty consecutive patients with age-related cataract awaiting cataract surgery under topical anesthesia in both eyes were enrolled prospectively. In randomized order, cataract surgery with combined PPCCC and POBH was performed in 1 eye. In the fellow eye, cataract surgery was performed conventionally with in-the-bag IOL implantation and the posterior lens capsule kept intact. Standardized IOP measurements by Goldmann applanation tonometry were performed 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 24 hours postoperatively. Follow-up IOP measurements were taken at 1 week and 1 month. Twenty-five patients received 1-time IOP-lowering medication immediately after cataract surgery; the other 25 did not receive IOP-lowering drops.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the first 24 hours postoperatively, no significant differences in IOP were observed between the PPCCC-POBH group and the conventional surgery group (P>.05). No IOP peaks greater than 27 mm Hg were observed in any eye. One week and 1 month postoperatively, no significant differences in IOP were found between groups (P>.05). The use of IOP-lowering drops significantly reduced postoperative IOP. However, no IOP spikes >27 mm Hg were found with and without the use of IOP-lowering drops.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The course of IOP after cataract surgery with combined PPCCC and POBH showed the technique to be as safe as conventional cataract surgery with in-the-bag IOL implantation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stifter
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Luksch
authors.forename: Rupert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Menapace
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019923:Capsulorhexis / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D019654:Lens Implantation, Intraocular / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018918:Phacoemulsification / Q000379:methods*; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014065:Tonometry, Ocular