title: Wound temperature profiles of coaxial mini-incision versus sleeveless microincision phacoemulsification.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Temperature profiles at the corneal wound of coaxial mini-incision (2.4 mm) cataract surgery and sleeveless microincision (1.1 mm) cataract surgery were compared.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective, controlled, paired-eye clinical trial conducted in a tertiary care hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty patients with mild-to-moderate bilateral nuclear sclerotic cataract.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty patients underwent bilateral cataract surgery within a 1-month period. One eye was operated on by conventional coaxial mini-incision (2.4 mm) phacoemulsification. The second eye underwent microincision surgery by using a naked phacoemulsification tip and a specialized 19-gauge anterior chamber maintainer as the sole fluid source (three-port microincision cataract surgery technique). Patients had moderate bilateral cataracts with no other anterior segment pathology. Temperature at the corneal wound was constantly recorded by using infrared thermal imaging.
  
  
  METHODS
  Temperatures at the corneal wound.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean temperatures at the corneal surgical wound were not significantly different between the coaxial and sleeveless groups (31.1 °C ± 2.3 vs. 31.0 °C ± 2. 0; P = 0.89). There was also no difference in maximum temperatures reached during phaco-emulsification. Temperatures did not rise above 40 °C during any surgery, and there were no corneal burns. Final visual acuity and intraoperative and postoperative complication rates were similar between the two groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The temperature profile at the surgical wound using a microincisional sleeveless phacoemulsification technique is comparable with that of the conventional coaxial mini-incision method.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel.
authors.forename: Avner
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Belkin
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel.|Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.|Ein Tal Eye Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Adi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abulafia
authors.affiliation: Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.|Ein Tal Eye Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.|Department of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Adi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Michaeli
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel.
authors.forename: Shay
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ofir
authors.affiliation: Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.|Ein Tal Eye Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Ehud I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Assia
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000502:physiology*; D003315:Cornea / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007431:Intraoperative Complications; D008297:Male; D008866:Microsurgery / Q000379:methods; D018918:Phacoemulsification / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011446:Prospective Studies; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers; D013817:Thermography; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology
keywords: corneal temperature; sleeveless phacoemulsification; three-port phacoemulsification