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Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery may carry a lower risk of cystoid macular edema
 Zoltan Nagy |
ISTANBUL, Turkey - Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery may reduce the risk of postoperative cystoid macular edema over standard ultrasound phacoemulsification, according to a study.
In two groups of 20 eyes of 20 patients, the impact of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery and standard phaco on the macula was evaluated by measuring macular thickness by optical coherence tomography in three macular regions (central, inner macular ring and outer macular ring) before surgery and 1 and 4 weeks postoperatively.
"OCT measurement showed significantly lower macular thickness in the inner retinal ring in the femtosecond laser group," Zoltan Nagy, MD, said at the winter meeting of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons here. "In the control group, the inner macular ring was 21.68 µm thicker at 1 week. At 1 month, this difference decreased to a mean of 17.56 µm and became marginally significant."
The potentially decreased risk of developing postoperative cystoid macular edema could be particularly advantageous for patients with ocular comorbidities, such as uveitis and diabetic retinopathy, he said.
- Disclosure: Dr. Nagy is a consultant for Alcon/LenSx.