Vitrectomy with endoscopy for management of retained lens fragments and/or posteriorly dislocated intraocular lens.

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To evaluate the advantages of vitrectomy combined with endoscopy for the management of retained lens fragments and/or posteriorly dislocated intraocular lens (IOL). A consecutive series of 30 eyes with these complications treated by this technique was reviewed retrospectively. An endoscopic probe which incorporates a video channel, a fibreoptic light source, and a diode laser was used for visualization. Lens material or the IOL was extracted through the corneal wound in 18 eyes (60%). They were either aspired or grasped or lifted using perfluorocarbon liquids (PFCL), under endoscopic control. In 9 eyes (30%) pars plana phakoemulsification was performed. PFCL was used in 11 eyes (36.6%). In 16 eyes (53.3%) an IOL was sutured in the ciliary sulcus. Final visual acuity was > or = 20/40 in 19 eyes (63.3%), > or = 20/30 in 15 eyes (50%). Intraoperative breaks occurred early in the series in two eyes (in one case from use of the endoprobe, in the other from pars plana phakoemulsification). Poor final acuity was related to proliferative vitreoretinopathy, which developed in both cases with an intraoperative iatrogenic retinal break, senile macular degeneration, myopia and amblyopia, cystoid macular oedema, corneal oedema and high astigmatism. We found that endoscopy facilitated the management of these complications of cataract surgery once the peculiar difficulties of the technique (absence of stereoscopy, manipulation of the endoprobe, video monitor control) were mastered. Endoscopy facilitated and shortened localization of lens fragments embedded into the vitreous base for aspiration, grasping and phakoemulsification, enabled detection of small anterior retinal breaks, permitted resection of adhesions between anterior hyaloid, lens capsule and ciliary sulcus and facilitated PFCL manipulations, whatever the status of the anterior segment (corneal edema, myosis, synechiae, presence of IOL).