Scheimpflug photographic imaging following implantation of anterior and posterior chamber phakic intraocular lenses: preliminary results

Abstract

For the correction of refractive errors lenticular procedures are increasingly used in addition to corneal refractive surgery. One of those techniques is the implantation of intraocular lenses into phakic eyes (pIOL). Due to the close neighborhood of the implant to delicate intraocular structures, exact positioning and high postoperative stability are required. Scheimpflug photography has been shown to be a suitable instrument for the biometry of the anterior eye segment and the examination of IOL position. Four anterior chamber phakic IOLs (pIOLs) (Bausch & Lomb NuVita) and 7 posterior chamber pIOLs (Staar ICL) were examined 1 week, 1 month and 3-6 months following implantation. At each examination 1 Scheimpflug slit image and 1 infrared retroillumination image were taken using the anterior eye segment analysis system EAS-1000 (Nidek Co., Gamagori, Japan). Evaluation of the images was performed with a personal computer and the software provided by the manufacturer. The distance of the pIOL to cornea and human lens was calculated and incidence and amount of pIOL rotation around the optical axis and potential crystalline lens opacification were assessed. The distance between the anterior chamber pIOL and the cornea 1 week after implantation was 1.61 +/- 0.10 mm. The distances between the myopic posterior chamber pIOL and the human lens were 0.34 +/- 0.11 mm and between the hyperopic posterior chamber pIOL and the human lens 0.26 and 0.29 mm, respectively. The values were constant over a period of 3-6 months. The pIOL showed no movement or change of position around the optical axis. There was no detectable cataract formation in the human lens. All implanted phakic anterior and posterior chamber IOLs showed a stable position in the eye within the observation period. Scheimpflug photography is proved to be a useful technique for the postoperative evaluation of the positioning of phakic IOLs.