ASCRS ‘hot topics’ include new products in cataract surgery

SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Advances in cataract surgery that have become available to U.S. surgeons in the past year include an accommodative IOL and two types of capsular tension ring. These were among the “hot topics” discussed here during a symposium the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery meeting.

After a long wait, capsular tension rings are now in the hands of U.S. ophthalmologists, said Kenneth Rosenthal, MD. Rings from both Morcher and Ophtec were recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration. He said the two companies’ rings are similar, but further studies will be required to establish their usefulness and stability postoperatively.

Accommodating IOLs, including the eyeonics Crystalens approved last fall by the FDA, hold promise, but surgeons should be wary of inflating patient expectations, said Samuel Masket, MD. Studies have shown that higher powers of the lens achieve greater levels accommodation, and the lenses currently in use have had good results, he said. Accommodative lenses still in the pipeline include single-optic models with dynamic optics, the Medennium Smart IOL and the dual-optic Visiogen Synchrony.

Another “hot topics” addressed at the symposium was the health of the ophthalmic market. Economic consultant Kenneth P. Taylor, OD, said the ophthalmic industry is strong. He said the number of cataract cases performed per year will increase as the population ages, and refractive surgery will revive as economic conditions improve. Most of the market for spectacle lenses and frames, however, is still held by optometry, he told attendees.