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Intraoperative aberrometry offers superior refractive outcomes in cataract surgery
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MILAN – Intraoperative aberrometry is an effective and reliable method for IOL selection and alignment, greatly improving the refractive outcome of cataract surgery, according to one specialist.
The ORA system with VerifEye software (WaveTec Vision) has become an indispensable tool in the practice of Alan R. Faulkner, MD.
Alan R. Faulkner
“I have been using intraoperative aberrometry form the beginning, when it was still a highly imperfect system. Now it has become an essential part of my surgery,” he said. “Particularly for the extremes of hyperopia and myopia, it is more consistent and better than any of the available formulas.”
Approximately 85% of Faulkner’s patients’ outcomes were within 0.5 D of emmetropia. ORA measurements differed by 0.5 D to 2 D from preoperative measurements using classic formulas, indicating that there would have been an error if the ORA had not been used, according to Faulkner.
Based on the outcomes of nearly 5,000 eyes, the prediction error of intraoperative ORA measurements vs. preoperative IOL power calculations were compared. ORA measurements were significantly nearer to target outcomes, Faulkner said.
“All our preoperative measurements depend on the accuracy of devices and formulas, and often from multiple formulas, you have multiple answers,” he said. “I use the Olsen formula, the Holladay II formula and the Lenstar, and sometimes there is 1 D to 2.5 D difference. Intraoperative aberrometry shows me which one is right, or somewhere in between.”
Disclosure: Faulkner is on the speakers bureau and does clinical trials for Alcon, is a speaker and consultant for Bausch + Lomb, does clinical trials for WaveTec, and is an investor in Strathspey Crown/Alphaeon.