Crystalline lens rise important in preventing pigment dispersion, study finds

Crystalline lens rise should be used as a safety criterion to prevent pigment dispersion in eyes with the Ophtec Artisan phakic IOL, according to a study. This should also apply to other types of phakic IOLs, the study authors noted.

Georges Baikoff, MD, and colleagues conducted a comparative analysis of crystalline lens rise in nine eyes that had pigment dispersion and 78 eyes that did not have dispersion. All 87 eyes had previous Artisan IOL implantation, and anterior segment imaging was performed with an anterior chamber optical coherence tomography prototype.

The study defined crystalline lens rise as the distance between the anterior pole of the crystalline lens and the horizontal plane joining the opposite iridocorneal recesses.

The researchers found that the higher the crystalline lens rise, the higher the risk of developing pigment dispersion. There was little or no risk of pigment dispersion with a rise of less than 600 µm, but 67% of eyes with a rise of 600 µm or more developed pupillary pigment dispersion. It was seen more frequently in hyperopic eyes than in myopic ones.

“In some cases in which the IOL was loosely fixated, there was no traction on the iris root and dispersion was prevented or delayed,” the researchers said.

The study was published in the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.