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Refractive shift seen in pseudophakic eyes of children
J Cataract Refract Surg. 2012;38(1):102-107.
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Researchers have found a mean shift in refraction per year of -0.3 D among children older than 10 years of age with pseudophakic eyes, according to results of a case series study.
The study authors evaluated one pseudophakic eye of each of the 114 patients who had at least two refractions at least 1 year after their 10th birthday. The mean age of the participants was 8.86 years at the time of IOL implantation, 11.56 years at the time of the first refraction in the second decade of life and 15.84 years at the time of the last refraction, according to the study.
Mean initial refraction was -0.65 D, and mean final refraction was -1.78 D. A myopic shift in refraction was identified in 86.8% of eyes; 64% of eyes had up to a 0.5 D myopic shift per year. Age at the time of IOL implantation was not a factor in refractive shift. The median refractive shift was higher in white patients than black patients (P = .006).
These results may help to guide surgeons in their prediction of the extent of refractive changes that can be expected in children, according to the study. In addition, these results have "important implications for the use of multifocal IOLs in preteens and teenagers and for IOL power selection."