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Long-term results of iris-fixated foldable phakic lens implantation for moderate to high myopia: refractive, visual and safety results after 5 years

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First Author: T.Monteiro PORTUGAL

Co Author(s):    N. Franqueira   F. Faria Correia   J. Mendes   F. Vaz           

Abstract Details

Purpose:

The implantation of a phakic intraocular lens (IOL) is the preferred option for the surgical treatment of moderate to high myopia in young patients. The Artiflex® is a phakic, flexible, iris-fixated IOL. The aim of this study was to analyze the efficacy and safety of Artiflex® lens implant (Ophtec BV, Groningen, Netherlands) for refractive correction of moderate to high myopia in a long-term follow-up period

Setting:

Ophthalmology Department, Hospital de Braga, Portugal

Methods:

We analyzed data from 177 of eyes of 84 patients undergoing Artiflex® lens implant for the correction of high myopia, between January 2010 and December 2013. The mean age was 32,33 ± 7,13 years and the mean preoperative SE was -9,51 ± 2,93 D. The minimum follow-up time was 60 months and the parameters analyzed were: visual acuity without (UCVA) and with correction (BCVA); subjective sphere, cylinder and spherical equivalent; anterior chamber depth (ACD) and central endothelial cell count (ECC). The indexes for efficacy and safety were also calculated.

Results:

At 12 months, BCVA significantly improved from 0,80 ± 0,18 to 0,93 ± 0,15; and the UCVA was 0,81 ± 0,19 (efficacy index 1.0). At 60 months, no statistically significant difference was observed for UCVA and BCVA. The postoperative SE at 12 months (-0,24 ± 0,42 D) significantly increased at 60 months (-0,42 ± 0,43 D). The average endothelial cell loss at 60 months was -7,7%. In patients with preoperative ACD below 3,00 mm, the average loss of endothelial cells was -17,49%; if we compare the ACD cut-off at 3,1 mm, the average cell loss is identical (8,2% and 7,8%).

Conclusions:

The implantation of a phakic foldable intraocular iris-fixated lens (Artiflex®) is an effective, safe and stable treatment of moderate to high myopia. There is a clear correlation between lower preoperative ACD and higher postoperative endothelial cell loss; a preoperative ACD equal or above 3,1 mm is a safe cut-off value for the long term endothelial cell survival. 

Financial Disclosure:

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