High-frequency ultrasound deemed useful in preop assessments

Using high-frequency ultrasound may be helpful as an adjunct for the preoperative assessment of secondary ciliary sulcus-supported IOL implantation in aphakic patients who had congenital cataract extraction without IOL implantation, according to a small prospective study.

D.J. DeSilva, MRCS(Ed), and colleagues in London compared nine eyes of five patients that had undergone lensectomies for congenital cataracts without primary implantation of an IOL and were being evaluated for secondary IOL insertion. Slit lamp and high-frequency ultrasound were both used for diagnosis.

Clinical slit lamp examination suggested that three of the nine eyes had inadequate sulcociliary support, but high-frequency ultrasound revealed more than adequate capsular remnants. In all nine eyes, sulcus-supported posterior chamber IOLs were implanted. No postop complications were observed, and none of the patients required surgery for dislocated IOLs.

The study is published in the July issue of Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.