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Which way is up?
When operating with beginning surgeons, I’m often asked, “How can a surgeon tell if the IOL is upside down?”
Because of the angulation and geometry, many IOLs will have a different optical result and undesirable effective lens position in the eye if inserted upside down.
Most IOL packages and cartridges will have a small diagram of the IOL in the correct orientation from the surgeon’s view. But probably the easiest confirmation is to look at the IOL and the orientation of the haptics.
Correct and incorrect orientation of an IOL from the surgeon’s view.
The lens haptics should be in the correct Z-shaped configuration when the IOL is correctly inserted in the eye. If the haptics are in the S-shaped configuration, you’ve made a silly mistake and inserted the IOL upside down.
Remember, S is for silly mistake, and you’ll always know which way is up.