The clinical outcome and the indications of retropupillary fixation of Artisan®

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the indications for surgical correction of aphakia and stability and complications following the combination of multiple procedures with retrofixation of Artisan® (Ophtec, Groningen, Netherlands). Seven patients who underwent retropupillary fixation of the intraocular lens (IOL) in the Cataract and Refractive Surgery Unit of Dubai Hospital from January 2012 to December 2012 were selected for the study. The study included one patient with aphakia following penetrating injury with pupillary abnormality, two patients with opaque hydrogel posterior chamber IOL (PCIOL) (with pseudophakic bullous keratopathy in one of these patients) and one patient each wth previous failed keratoplasty with anterior chamber IOL (ACIOL) and pupillary abnormality, aphakia following complicated cataract surgery, subluxated PCIOL with sunset syndrome and pseudophakic bullous keratopathy with ACIOL. All the patients underwent detailed eye examination and IOL calculation. Artisan insertion was combined with other surgical procedures in all of the patients and the patients were followed up postoperatively for a minimum of 6 months. There was improvement in vision in all patients. There was no significant increase in intraocular pressure (IOP) or postoperative inflammation, but one patient showed disenclavation of the haptic after 6 months. Retrofixation of IOL is one of the novel methods of correcting secondary aphakia of various causes. It is well tolerated in any age group and presents few complications. In addition, this procedure can be easily combined with other procedures such as penetrating keratoplasty, vitrectomy and anterior chamber reconstruction.